Female Founder Leadership | Emma Woods, Chair of Ancient+Brave, ex CEO of wagamama

Today, I’m joined by Emma Woods, Chair of Ancient+Brave, ex CEO of wagamama, and one of the most experienced growth leaders I know.
Emma has done the full journey - Unilever, high-growth markets in Mexico, PizzaExpress, Merlin, Wagamama and now she brings all of that to the challenger brands who need it most, as a chair and board director.

This isn't a conversation about corporate playbooks. It's about what actually works when you're building something from the ground up.
We go deep on boards - why so many founders get this wrong, and what to do instead. Emma introduces the concept of a Growth Chair: not just governance, but someone who's been at your stage of growth and can help you make better decisions, faster.

We also get into confidence, imposter syndrome, leadership stretch, and why, despite real progress, women are still underrepresented in the rooms where it matters.

Emma shares her Vital 5 - a framework for the metrics and decisions that actually move a brand forward.
If you're building a challenger brand, this one will change how you think.

What You'll Learn
- Why most founders get their board wrong and what a Growth Chair actually does

- How to find and brief the right advisors for your stage of growth

- Emma's Vital 5: the metrics and mindset shifts that drive real growth

- How to lead when you're constantly outside your comfort zone

- Why confidence isn't a personality trait… it's a practice

- The real state of women in senior business leadership and what needs to change

Key Topics Discussed
- Emma Woods’ journey from Unilever to Wagamama CEO to board leadership

- What high-growth markets teach you about speed, instinct and leadership

- When founders should introduce a board and why timing matters

- Governance vs growth: what boards should actually be doing

- The “Vital Five” and how to focus your business

- Why consumer brands are “leaky buckets” (and what to do about it)

- The PizzaExpress promotion lesson and the long-term cost of short-term growth

- What makes a great chair-founder relationship

- Growth leadership vs traditional leadership

- Women in business: boards, CEOs and the “power seat” gap

- Confidence, imposter syndrome and leadership stretch

- Emma’s Conversations in Confidence series

Useful links:
Connect with Emma Woods on LinkedIn
Emma’s Conversations in Confidence series

We love inspiring you and helping your business to grow. Please share this episode with another founder building a challenger brand, a colleague, or a mate who is interested in the future of food, content-led growth and scaling consumer brands. Don’t forget to follow or subscribe to Brand Growth Heroes on your favourite podcast app, and please leave a review too. Both of those actions make a massive difference to our mission to help more founders just like you.

You can also connect with Brand Growth Heroes on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube, find out more about the programmes and courses I run, and join our NextGen CPG WhatsApp group for founders leaning into the value that a leadership approach to engaging with AI can unlock for businesses like yours.

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Thanks to Brand Growth Heroes’ podcast sponsor - Joelson, a B Corp certified commercial law firm.

If you're a founder, you already know how much energy goes into building the perfect product, creating standout branding and connecting with consumers.

But scaling a CPG business also brings legal complexities that can make or break your growth journey - from contracts and regulatory compliance to protecting your intellectual property.

That’s why we’re proud to partner with Joelson, the leading commercial law firm specialising in helping founders of scaling consumer brands.

Joelson works with brands like Little Moons, TRIP, Two Chicks, graze and Crosta & Mollica, and advised the Innocent founders on their landmark sale to Coca-Cola - and still work with them today!

Do you need legal advice as you grow your brand? Take this BIG opportunity and book a free consultation with one of Joelson lawyers here.

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Thanks to our Sound Engineer, Gyp Buggane, Ballagroove.com and podcast producer, Kathryn Watts, Social KEWS.