S2, Ep 07: Lee Personius on Leading Growth, One Pizza At A Time
From Sales Leader Secrets by Uspire
June 3, 2025 · 30 min · Season 2 · Episode 7
About this episode
Lee Personius shares his journey of growing Tugo into a leading food-to-go business in the UK and discusses leadership and team culture.
Have you ever wondered how a small food startup with just four people became one of the UK’s leading names in the food-to-go industry? In this episode of Sales Leaders’ Secrets , Amanda Downs sits down with Lee Personius, founder and CEO of Tugo. From humble beginnings in a rundown trading estate, Lee has grown Tugo into a £22 million business and he’s aiming to double that in the next decade. He shares how he secured early investment, won over big customers, and maintained a close-knit team culture along the way. Tune in to learn more about leadership, growth, and why celebrating with pizza matters more than you think. Here are the Highlights: 00:00 Introduction 05:16 Early stage mistakes and growth 06:56 Startup journey with key support 11:23 Balancing family feel & performance 13:47 Why some people are built to be entrepreneurs 18:39 Developing a softer leadership style over time 21:48 Reliable support in tough times 24:28 Caution in crisis 27:54 Be clear on what you do Join us each month between May and November for the Uspire webinar series “Become a Better Leader” and get valuable leadership frameworks and techniques to help you achieve sustainable growth…
People in this episode
Host: Amanda Downs
Guest: Lee Personius
Topics covered
- leadership
- business growth
- startup journey
- team culture
- entrepreneurship
- investment
Keywords
- food startup
- business growth
- leadership style
- investment
- team culture
- entrepreneurship
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Tugo
Places: UK
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