Richard Richardson : Full Biography : SPEAKERS for BUSINESS

Richard Richardson

No marketing budget? No problem

Full Biography

Richard Richardson and his business partner John Barnes are probably best known for their transformation of Harry Ramsden's from a single fish and chip shop into a world famous brand and as the creators of Marketing Judo. However, prior to creating their own business successes they spent many years working for large international corporations.

Richard Richardson began his career in marketing with Rowntree Mackintosh before spending the next 12 years with multi-national advertising agencies such as BBDO and Young & Rubicam. It was when John moved the advertising account to Young & Rubicam that they met. Having worked so well together, John and Richard decided to give up their big company jobs and start a business partnership. Using the leverage of borrowed money they moved their families to Yorkshire and bought a fish and chip shop called Harry Ramsden's. Together they transformed it from a single restaurant into a world famous brand.

At Harry's they fell into a way of thinking which they now call Marketing Judo. In judo you use the weight of your opponent to your advantage. In judo by moving quickly you can take your opponent by surprise and unbalance them. In judo skill matters more than sheer size! Marketing Judo takes these same principles and applies them to business. Marketing Judo is not an academic concept. It's a practical hands-on framework based on their own experiences that they have found helpful in developing business strategies - whether you're a large blue-chip organisation looking to stretch your budget further or a small company on a limited budget.

Since selling Harry Ramsden's, John and Richard have become involved in a wide range of businesses from listed PLCs to Private Equity Companies and Social Enterprises. Their most successful involvement, La Tasca Spanish restaurants, increased 5 times in value in 5 years via a stock market listing and recent sale.