Autistic inventor Ben pioneered creating the non-alcoholic category with Seedlip, the world’s first distilled non-alcoholic spirit taking the brand from his kitchen to 35 countries and exit to Diageo in 3.5 years.
Ben has since launched Seasn cocktail bitters 0.0% & Sylva - the world’s first non-alc distillery and maturation lab making aged non-alcoholic spirits from trees.
Ben is also the Founder of neurodiversity charity The Hidden 20%, and hosts their award-winning podcast aiming to break the cycle of silence, shame & stigma by championing the potential of thinking differently us media and role-models.
Highlights
I like making things that help and I like spotting things that need changing maybe or improving.
None of them have been about business and none of them have been about the outcome... they’ve all been driven by a curiosity and a ‘what if’.
I’m trying to apply some of that naivety, innocence and play into my work where it then doesn’t feel like work which is great.
I was desperate to learn about every single aspect of the business and I was really okay with the fact that I didn’t know.
I just want to make a big impact and I want to make a bit change and so when that’s my driver... the vehicle in which I can do that... is having businesses and a charity.
I think it’s really healthy to, to be cynical and unhappy and dissatisfied with the status quo.
I’ve learnt in the last three years that a lot of society doesn’t really have the right idea or the right information or an up-to-date understanding of neurodiversity.
I feel like I’m built for what I’m doing which is good and I feel like I’m trying to learn how my brain works to kind of harness that.
It’s really, really hard to make things simple so most people don’t.
I’ll give you two words, don’t know. I am not a, I don’t have the 5/10 year, I’m not a planner in that sense.