MorphCostumes CEO: Learn to build trust quickly

In this instalment of our video series, My Business Leader Secret, we talk to Fraser Smeaton, who co-founded MorphCostumes with his brother and a friend in 2009.

The Edinburgh-based company first made a name for itself with its full-body 'Morphsuits', which are made of Spandex. It even trademarked the name.

They'd seen one on a stag weekend in Dublin and were so impressed they found a way to source them in bulk, before setting up a side-hustle selling them.

They were a huge hit straight away and the young company turned over £1m in its first year. It primarily found customers through Facebook advertising.

However, around four years after starting the business the founders realised the market was saturated and the company had to diversify beyond Morphsuits. It now sells more than 1,200 different costume designs, around 80 per cent through direct-to-consumer channels such as Amazon, although it does also sell through large retailers like Target and Walmart in the US.

The business today employs more than 65 people and has a turnover of just over £40m.

Smeaton's CEO secret relates back to an activity he used to do as an adolescent and student. He earned extra money working as a golf caddy.

It turned out to be an invaluable experience, Smeaton explains, because it taught him a key business skill. "In caddying, you have to build trust with your golfer as quickly as possible," Smeaton explains.

This has helped him build working relationships under time pressure with suppliers and retailers.

A childhood passion for golf has helped him build a Scottish business success story.

Watch the rest of the My Business Leader Secret series.