How Worcester Entrepreneur Simon Lancaster Turned a £500 Grant into SJL Insurance, a £35 Million Business Employing More Than 80 People
From working out of his parents’ bedroom with just a £500 grant to leading a multi-million-pound insurance company, Simon Lancaster’s entrepreneurial journey is one of Worcestershire’s most inspiring business success stories. The founder of SJL Insurance, based in Worcester, has transformed a redundancy setback into a thriving enterprise that now employs more than 80 people and generates over £35 million in annual revenue.
Turning Redundancy into Opportunity
After leaving college at 17 to begin an apprenticeship in the insurance sector, Simon faced an uncertain future when he was made redundant six years later. Rather than giving up, he used a small Chamber of Commerce grant to launch SJL Insurance, initially operating from a desk in his family home. Twenty-five years on, the company has become one of the region’s most successful independent insurance brokers, providing specialist business insurance solutions to organisations ranging from small local firms to multinational corporations.
How the Insurance Industry Has Evolved
Speaking to BBC Hereford & Worcester, Simon reflected on the challenges and opportunities that have shaped both his business and the wider insurance industry. While insurance remains an essential service for businesses, the sector has undergone significant changes driven by technology, digital transformation and the rise of artificial intelligence. He also highlighted the impact of major events including Brexit, the global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Supporting Local Businesses and Charities
Beyond business, Simon is committed to giving back to the community. Through the SJL Foundation, launched in 2019, he helps raise funds for charitable causes including Acorns Children’s Hospice while providing grants and mentoring to aspiring entrepreneurs. Inspired by the support he received when starting out, the foundation aims to help new business owners take their first steps towards success.
Investing in Worcestershire’s Future
As owner of Worcester City Football Club, Simon continues to play an active role in the region’s development. His story highlights the resilience, innovation and community spirit that continue to drive business success across Worcestershire and beyond.
Host: It is BBC Hereford and Worcester. Tammy Gooding at breakfast, the sweet smell of success on the program now, because he dropped out of college at 17 to take on an apprenticeship with an insurance company, only to then be made redundant six years later, but these early setbacks are not going to deter Worcester’s Simon Lancaster, who set up his own company, SJL Insurance, with a £500 Chamber of Commerce grant from a desk in his parents’ bedroom. Scroll forward 25 years, and SJL Insurance now employs more than 80 people, has offices on the tithing in Worcester. They generate more than £35 million in annual revenue, and have set up the SJL Foundation, and Simon also owns Worcester City Football Club. So, when he spoke, we spoke to Simon Lancaster, BBC Hereford, and Worcester’s Trevor Owen suggested that from those humble beginnings things had turned out well, really pretty well.
Simon: Yeah, it’s gone okay. When you just look at it in simple terms, from then to now, it seems like an easy journey, but that’s been 25 years and a quarter of a century of hard work, not just for me, but for lots of people out there. You know, some of the early staff that I took on are still with me. Rob, one of my MDs, he was my first member of staff, came to work for me when I was still working out of my flat, which is where I moved to after the parents’ home, and he’s still here, and he’s actually director of the football club as well. So, ton of hard work from a lot of people for 25 years, really. So it’s not a straight leap from from there to now.
Interviewer: Has the industry changed much in those 25 years?
Simon: It has. I mean, insurance is one of the oldest industries there is, been around for centuries, and it hasn’t changed much in that sense. But as with anything, technology, obviously, and you know, use of AI and everything like that has changed a lot more, and when I started, that first thing I did on that first day was send out a paper mail, so it wouldn’t be doing that now, would you? So, yeah, lots of technological changes and things, and obviously we’ve been through a lot of challenges in that time, we’ve had COVID in that time, we’ve had a banking financial crash at that time, we’ve had Brexit, all sorts of things, so it’s been lots of change and lots of challenges, but something that I’ve really enjoyed.
Interviewer: But insurance is something we’ve all got to have.
Simon: Yeah, and I think more by luck than judgment, you know. Insurance is a pretty safe industry, really. You know, it’s been around a long time, and you know, a lot of these industries you see struggling at the moment, don’t you? Hospitality and retail, and all sorts of things, but insurance – everybody needs to have it. And we specialise in business insurance, so we insure businesses – anything from a small one-man band right up to multinationals, and being a lawyers broker who can insure businesses around the world as well, and everything in between, and they all need to have insurance. The types of insurance they buy has slightly changed, you know. Used to insure their old shop and stock, whereas now you’re insuring them against cyber attacks and all sorts of things, but ultimately they all need insurance, and fortunately for us, it’s not one of the industries that seems to go by the wayside. It stands the test of time, which is brilliant. I think it’s a great career for people as well. You know, youngsters looking for a career, they probably don’t think of insurance. I know I didn’t. It’s something you sort of stumble into rather than plan to go into, but it’s actually worth youngsters, you know, considering as a viable career, to be fair.
Interviewer: And we know we have SJL insurance, SJL Foundation as well. Tell us a bit about that.
Simon: So, we launched that in the House of Commons in 2019 to raise money from our clients and our staff, with the aim of raising £100,000 a year. We do an annual ball at the Bank House in Worcester. We support Acorns, local children’s hospice, who, like all hospices, are struggling, and they do fantastic things. That’s a really good cause. And we also give business startup grants to people who find themselves in the same situation that I was in all those years ago, and help them with a bit of mentoring, and get them started on the path to start their own business. So we donate to small businesses as well, and some of them that we’ve helped down the years, I had an email off one yesterday, and they still, they were one of our first grant recipients, and they’re doing well. So, you know, it’s fantastic, really a good way of giving it back. And I remember when I got that first grant from the Chamber of Commerce. I said, why are you giving me this? And they said, well, if you make a success of it, you’ll be bringing people into the local economy, people be supporting the local salmon shops and B and B’s and things like that, and paying taxes locally. So, it’s good for the local economy if you give them a good return on that 500 quid. In my case, which hopefully I have, so we’re just giving it back in that sense, really. So, that’s that’s exciting.
Host: Simon Lancaster, who’s the founder of Worcester-based SJL Insurance and the owner of Worcester City Football Club.
