‘I’m an accidental entrepreneur – I followed my gut and made £130,000 revenue in one year’
Gemma Stuart invested tens of thousands of pounds of her savings into the business
GEMMA STUART
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A woman who struggled for 15 years with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) flare-ups has explained how she turned her experience into an opportunity.
The digestive problem, which can have a profound impact on quality of life, would leave Gemma Stuart, now 40, so bloated people would think she was pregnant.
She experienced a lot of embarrassment and stomach pain every time she ate, forcing her to cancel plans.
“Irritable guts cause irritable people,” she told GB News. “So, at times, I wasn’t the most fun to be around and that wasn’t nice for me either.”
Gemma isn’t alone - an estimated 13 million people in the UK suffer with irritable bowel syndrome, according to the NHS.
“For families, that means holidays can be ruined and family get-togethers can be cut short,” she said.
Gemma tried everything to ease her IBS, from medication prescribed by doctors to drastically changing her diet. She found the latter “really restrictive”, adding: “It didn’t really help me."
“I had cameras in places you don’t want to think about. I tried everything to try and get in control of my gut health,” Gemma recalled.
“The symptoms were long-ranging and lasted a long time, but I think it was triggered by travelling.”
Determined to find something to ease her struggle, Gemma began studying IBS Management at university.
“I wanted to understand how I can get my own self sorted, and then through that process, I started to understand more about biotics.”
In 2022, Gemma developed Gut Wealth, the UK’s first liquid postbiotic product.
She said: “I had tried everything. Certain things had helped me for short periods of time and then the same old symptoms would come up and flare ups would happen again. When I realised I could help other people, that was a big spark of inspiration for me.”
Gemma had previously been buying products from France and Italy, but supply chain issued at the time made importing them challenging.
She explained: “I thought, ‘Actually, I’ve brought products that have helped me for short periods of time in different countries’ and I felt that I could use some of or similar ingredients, in order to be able to create something that could help others.”
Gut Wealth was born, and Gemma has spent time developing the product to suit customers. Tweaking the parcel size to fit through a letterbox, was an important step, she said.
Gemma’s invested around £55,000 so far in the business, £40,000 of which came from upfront savings.
In the last 365 days, the business has brought in around £130,000 in revenue, Gemma said during the interview.
“We’re on target to do £215,000 to £230,000 revenue for the coming year,” she added.
Gemma says she has got an “entrepreneurial spark” - she has previously sold eyelashes for car lights and enjoyed working multiple jobs while at university.
“It’s not because I’m money motivated, but because I like being in amongst things,” she said.
Before founding Gut Wealth, Gemma had been running her own consultancy, working mostly in financial services.
“I already had a business, so to speak, but the business was just me and it was a service business, so it was very, very different to what I’m doing now.
“I’m not making as much money as I did when I had the security of a stable job and a pension and all those kind of things,” the entrepreneur said. “But the long-term plan and the long-term prospects and opportunity are much bigger.
“But I’m driven by this business being the right thing for me to do. I’ve absolutely followed my gut. It’s what I’m supposed to be doing.”
It’s not been without its challenges, however. “There are highs and lows of running a small business,” she said. “But it’s absolutely the best thing I’ve ever done.”
The company operates on a largely outsourced model, although Gemma hopes to bring on her first hire later this year.
She currently works with three paid interns, who are studying at the University of Strathclyde.
“They bring a lot of skills, energy and ideas,” Gemma said. “I think that there’s a real opportunity for small businesses to work with people as they’re going through their early stage careers because you get all the energy and all the excitement and all the opportunity to learn. But they get the opportunity to understand what it’s like working in an office for the first time, working in a small business, working in a team.
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“I think it’sreally important to give them the opportunity to fail and make a few mistakes,” Gemma said.
“I really wanted to give them the opportunity to develop some skills, learn some soft skills, some negotiation skills, but also to fail a little bit in a safe environment.”
Gemma didn’t feel comfortable talking about her IBS and symptoms at first, but realised the business shouldn’t be “faceless”.
She said: “I’ve come a really long way in the last two years because if I’m not willing to talk about it, then how can I expect others to?
“I realised the more I tell my story, the more other people connect to it, and removing some of that taboo around the topic was really important.”
As well as running her own business, the entrepreneur is helping other founders, as a mentor with the charity Digital Boost.
Her advice for small businesses starting out? “You have to be really comfortable with feeling uncomfortable,” she said.
“But the main resounding thing is you have got to scratch that itch and go for it. You’ll never know unless you absolutely go for it.
“When I engage with young entrepreneurs, especially, what I try to do is give them some advice to make them more comfortable to get to the next stage.
“Also, don’t stay at home working on the business, beavering away and worrying. Get out there and talk to other entrepreneurs.
“There are entrepreneurial groups all across the UK, especially in the big cities and hubs. Find your tribe, find people and don’t be scared to share your idea, because people want to help you.”