d3p0 Meets - Andrew Ellis - Creative Industry Entrepreneur - #LikeMinds and #DevonLife

Well hi!, thanks for getting this far already. Come on in meet Andrew...

I first met Andrew at his first #Likeminds event in Exeter, Devon, Great Britain (or is United Kingdom, maybe just UK, but then I could use GB, ah Brexit Land might get a smile or England, yeah Devoners will like, Devon, England. Bah, I don't know how to do the cross out thing above, so onward). Note to self - Post about UK self identification issues.

I've sat for 4 mins thinking about how to introduce Andrew, here goes...

Proper old school, been there, done it, photographed it, worn it, lived it and published it.
For some of the biggest rock music people on planet Earth and a few others in between.

Andrew is a monument to the creative industry and I'm blessed to know him. He has epic stories, deep wisdom and totally gets the digital age. Andrew knows not only how to think big, but to deliver big too!

The event taking most effort right now is the LikeMinds Ideas Festival in Liverpool. I'm only plugging because I've known Andrew over. decade, I trust him to deliver value for money with the passion added in for free.

Andrew is generous, but also a shrewd businessman (profit is important).
When we walked through his town of Ashburton on the edge of Dartmoor, I felt as if I was walking with a nobleman.
I was actually, a senior art lecturerer who wasn't wearing spots (ask Andrew) stopped us in the street and we all exchanged smiles, experiences or comment.

Through his vision and ability to deliver Andrew has created an IRL bridge between the West Country (and all that it has to offer) with London. It's no mean feet. It takes hours of dedication to travel, emails, linkedin, social media updates and phone calls, yes real phone calls.

Andrew bought me breakfast, it was delicious. I can't remember what is was called but my host recommended it, it was NOT a full English (boo! lol).
[I'm not a food critic nor do I do venue revues, just saying]

Over breakfast we mapped out how our business lives in digital had flowed in similar ways, it was incredible the stories we had in common. Being a petrol head, the shared memory I enjoyed most was, how we worked with broadcasters and Bernie Ecclestone in the early digital days. It was a nightmare, big corp bullies. Andrew won on his day in court and I beat off my opponent with a strong threat that didn't involve lawyers. Nothing illegal, but I would come for him man to man. I had no money for lawyers. Ha! How the world has changed. You need a lawyer to check what the first lawyer is doing nowadays. A bit of man to man can solve a lot in my experience. I can't speak as a woman, I don't know how woman to woman works.

So...What is it I admire and respect in Andrew to have stayed in contact with him for a decade (these are non business reasons).

1. He's older than me and looks younger than me. From this man I can learn.
2. He's been married for decades and I met his wife Helen. I'd like to be friends with Helen, but that might sound creepy lol. Helen is successful in her own right and as the a mother and partner to an entrepreneur wins the title of "I'm not worthy" from me.
3. Andrew is true to himself.
4. He has a house in Devon on the edge of Dartmoor. What a great life decision. Mucho admiration from me.
5. A decade ago Andrew via Likeminds gave to me. They gave me airfare money to speak in Tel Aviv, Israel. They also gave me stage time at #Likeminds 1 - I still have friends today from that conference. I hope you get to meet them.

Pic from Andrew's garden

I luv u,
d3p0