OPUS

What a year it’s been! From incredible People to impactful Partners and inspiring Programming, 2024 has been one to remember. At OPUS, our mission is to help early-stage entrepreneurs achieve their missions — and together, we’ve done just that. Here’s to everything our community have built and all that’s ahead 2025!

At OPUS, we know that communities can feel magical, but they don't come together by magic. We're building a world-class team to support the next generation of early-stage entrepreneurs on their journeys, and today we are proud to introduce Chloe Aisha Rhys - our new Head of Operations. Chloe brings years of experience in leading support and community operations across Fintech, women-led and social impact startups. Most recently, she was Head of Community Operations at Peanut App, connecting women across different life stages, where she was responsible for scaling cross-functional, daily operations as well as developing global community policies and best practices. Passionate about authentic, creative community-building and operations strategy, Chloe is on a mission to innovate and scale connection and collaboration, supporting OPUS’ community to win together. Welcome Chloe!

Sharing for reach into our community of change makers. We look forward to spending time with Dr Anino Emuwa at the WEF meeting in Davos next month with our amazing delegation of mission focused founders.

This year, we’ve hosted over 70 events, ranging from flagship gatherings such as OPUS Oracles with Royals and Ambassadors to impactful conversations with visionaries on game-changing missions, such as the founders of charity: water and Enhanced Games. We’ve also curated exclusive experiences for our members, such as private tours at the Tate Museum and behind-the-scenes insights into multi-generational, successful brands like Boodles. Our members have taken part in extraordinary global missions from the Davos World Economic Forum to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, amplifying their impact on the world stage. We’ve leveraged the collective strength of our community through peer-led events that have tackled key topics like product-market fit and personal wealth advice. We’ve hosted events—across the UK, UAE, and beyond—where members have come together to connect and collaborate. 2024 has been an extraordinary year! We can’t wait to deliver even more inspiring and impactful events in 2025 for our members.

OPUS is proud to introduce Sophie Scoular - our new Head of Programming & Experiences. Having spent the last four years working with startups, Sophie created Vantage, a series of accelerator programmes designed to support early-stage founders on their growth journey. Through Vantage, Sophie provided strategic guidance, and hands-on support to help founders refine their target markets, build investor-ready pitches, and scale their companies. Sophie is on a mission to empower founders by creating transformative experiences that cultivate meaningful connections, providing the support they need to thrive and scale their businesses. Welcome Sophie!

We are thrilled to highlight the incredible recent achievements of our OPUS member, Lyndsay Mason and her team at For The Creators. Lyndsay is on a mission to empower pregnant women and new mums with high quality maternity fashion. They have secured a fantastic partnership with Perkbox, a global leader in employee benefits. This collaboration will allow FTC’s Membership to be offered as a corporate perk, reaching over 4 million employees across SMEs and enterprise clients in the UK! In addition, their Republic crowdfunding campaign has just gone live and is already an impressive 92% funded! With just £24K left to close and a goal of securing an additional £50K in overfunding by the end of the month support their campaign here: https://lnkd.in/g7XmVgbY We’re excited to see how you continue to empower creators everywhere!

If you are building a business and would love an early stage OPUS community in your country - we want to know! Where would you like to see OPUS set up a community in the future? Let us know in the comments! Register your interest: https://lnkd.in/gi2nZrVV

Join us for the OPUS Spring Retreat, a one-night, two-day getaway in March, designed to help you pause, reflect, and recharge. Highlights Include: 👉Member-Led Workshops:Learn and grow with insights from the OPUS community. 👉Special Guest Speakers: To be announced.. Be inspired by leading voices. 👉Outdoor Activities: Refresh your body and mind in stunning natural surroundings. 👉Unforgettable Party: Connect and celebrate. Current members, secure your spot on the waitlist today via the OPUS app! Not an OPUS member yet? Applications for 2025 are now open —don’t miss the opportunity to join us and unlock incredible experiences like this.

Great ideas need execution and real-world validation—focus on solving problems, prototype quickly, and embrace feedback to turn your vision into reality.

This week on The Everyday Founder podcast, James Farnfield is joined by Alastair Lukies CBE, the visionary behind Monitise, a groundbreaking mobile banking solution that transformed how we manage our finances daily, turning it into a $2B business. From the rugby fields to billion-dollar boardrooms, Alastair’s story is one of resilience and innovation. In this episode, he shares his insights on overcoming startup challenges and the essential role of teamwork. Alastair highlights the impact of personal experiences on success and the importance of community support for entrepreneurs. He also explores the future of the UK tech sector, the delicate balance of regulation in fintech, and the need to focus on emerging technologies for sustainable growth. Alastair encourages founders to embrace their network and be open to learning from those with more experience. By championing collaboration and active listening, founders can create more resilient and successful ventures. Tune into the episode via the link in our comments