James Cowdale, &SONS: Know Your Customer, Let Go, and Success Beyond Profit

Finding Future Leaders · Nov 5, 2026 · 15m

How do you build a brand people genuinely want to belong to? In our first episode, University of Reading students put their questions to James Cowdale, co-founder of the British menswear brand &SONS.

James started &SONS as a side project alongside his branding agency, launched it on Kickstarter, and has spent ten years turning it into a lifestyle brand. He talks honestly about imposter syndrome, why he spent his evenings on live chat, the moment a founder becomes the bottleneck, and why the proudest moments have nothing to do with the P&L.

This conversation was recorded as part of The Digital…