Lindsay Cornelissen - Corporate banking to wine entrepreneur

“I felt like I'd been in the industry so long that I was on repeat.”

“Someone asked me what my Plan B was, and I didn’t have one which seemed crazy! I needed to take control and create one. ”

“Every Monday night for 15 months I would traipse out of the office at 6.30pm armed with my tasting glasses. The first night of that course, I felt a little intimidated. But I learned to have more faith in myself.

Overview of earlier career.

Lindsay “fell into a graduate scheme in the City after university” not knowing exactly what she wanted to do but she was drawn towards a career in finance.  She moved companies a few times to widen her experience and “to keep moving up the ladder” and spent 18 years with her last employer with her final position as MD and Head of UK Corporate Clients.

The trigger for change?

Lindsay described her need for change as a “slow burn” rather than one trigger.  

She loved the client relationship side of her work and whilst she enjoyed managing teams, Lindsay realised that as her career had progressed she’d moved further away from the element that she “really loved doing” - looking after her customers and negotiating deals. 

“I had become restless as I’d been doing the same thing for a while and when the financial crisis happened, it forced me to take a step back and look at where my career was heading. 

I realised that I had progressed as far as I wanted to in banking.  I felt that I was moving further and further away from clients which was the part that I really loved.”

A late-evening conversation with colleagues in 2008 prompted some deeper thought on Lindsay’s longer-term career.  They were discussing the tv coverage of the Lehman’s crash where people were filmed leaving the Lehman’s office with their belongings in card-board boxes.

“Someone asked me what my Plan B was, and I didn’t have one which seemed crazy!

I needed to take control and create one.”

First steps?

“Over the years, my love of good wine had grown, and I was lucky enough to have tasted some lovely wines when entertaining my corporate clients - wines that I would rarely have had the opportunity to taste in other circumstances. 

We sometimes held wine tastings for clients where a wine expert would join us to talk about the wine.  It was at one of those talks that I had a lightbulb moment and thought ‘I want to do that!’

I had always been interested in wine and my husband and I had done some basic evening courses in 1990s for fun.  I decided to take the next level of exam, the Wine & Spirit Education Trust's Diploma which is considered equivalent to a degree and a stepping stone to the Master of Wine qualification. 

So I went back to night school though I still didn’t have a "grand plan" and at that point I also didn’t even have much confidence that I could actually do it.

Every Monday night for 15 months I would traipse out of the office at 6.30pm armed with my tasting glasses. 

The first night of that course, with over 50% of the attendees being from the wine trade, I felt a little intimidated but I learned to have more faith in myself.   

We did a blind tasting and there was huge debate about one particular wine.  I had a really strong feeling that it was one particular grape, but others felt differently.  That night I learned to trust my judgement as I was correct even in the face of stiff competition from those who were more experienced.”   

What Lindsay learned?

In 2011, I’d completed my diploma and still wasn't sure how or if I was going to use it professionally.

But the banking industry, in dire need of stability, was faced with increasing legislation and regulation to say nothing about the general animosity towards that world.  

The thought of a completely different challenge became increasingly appealing and I began to ask myself if I was in the right place?

When another restructuring was announced at work 18 months later in 2013, I felt like I'd been in the industry so long that I was on repeat. It seemed to be the right time to take the opportunity to leave although I still had no clear plan. But that plan evolved over the next 12 months.

I researched the wine industry in general and thought long and hard about whether and how to set up my own wine business.

I re-engineered my CV and  applied for a couple of jobs in the industry but as I had no wine trade experience my expectations remained low.  I did however get selected for an interview to be the number 2 to a wine entrepreneur. 

Whilst I didn’t get that job, during the interview I was able to quiz the owner on how he had set up his business and took away some pointers to help me with my own business idea. 

Over those 12 months my thoughts and research developed. I went to wine trade fairs and met so many people in the industry who were helpful when they found out I was thinking of setting up a wine business – much more helpful that my old cut-throat world would have ever been.  

I spent so much time listening to other people’s stories in the industry that when I was ready to activate a business plan it was credible, well-researched and convincing enough to secure me a start-up grant.  

Whilst I am evolving the business all the time, I have stuck to that original business idea - a wine e-commerce business combining great wine and great customer service.”

 What Lindsay would do differently if she had to do it all again?

“I would have learned more about marketing the business on-line well before I launched the business (SEO, Social Media, Press, PR, Podcasts etc) though I'm not sure when I would have found the time to do it!

It would have been helpful in the early days especially when the website was being developed.  I’m learning it now as I go along but it takes time so I wish I had prioritised it earlier.”

 How it feels on the days when she knows she has made the right decision?

“Every day I know I made the right decision. I partly feel relief but mainly freedom.  Whilst I enjoyed working in my last organisation, I feel liberated from the bubble of that world, from the commute and from the structure. 

My former life was very City-focussed.  Now I spend every day learning something totally new. I am enjoying the freedom of a new world out there.

If I don’t want to work one morning I don’t have to.  It’s not in my personality type not to but I like having the freedom of choice.   

I enjoy meeting other entrepreneurs and small business owners too; they form a great support network.

I keep in touch with my old colleagues and meet for coffee or lunch occasionally.  Listening to them, I know the business cycle never truly changes and I feel some relief that I’m not still in that cycle.

That's not to say I don't miss the "large corporate world" altogether and I'm looking to fill that gap with NED positions where I can contribute some of the benefit of my experiences and have the best of both worlds."

 Any regrets?

“What's to regret? I work with wine!”

Learn more about Lindsay and her business:

Wines With Attitude saves busy wine lovers time by seeking out truly exceptional wines from around the world that do not disappoint. Lindsay loves helping consumers feel more confident in their wine choices through her blog posts (https://www.wineswithattitude.co.uk/blog) and through educational & fun wine-tastings for corporate events and private parties.

Email: hello@wineswithattitude.co.uk

Website: https://www.wineswithattitude.co.uk/

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