Daniel Zambartas

Versatile multimedia journalist producing original news and human-interest stories across sport, business and culture. Strong at self-sourcing interviews and finding off-beat angles. Experienced working fast to tight deadlines and delivering stories that perform. Credits include Insider Media and national titles.

Self-sourced stories for the UK's number one B2B publication Insider Media

When I interview someone about their business, I don’t just ask how much money they’re making. I focus on the story behind the entrepreneur, and how their personal journey is reflected in the company’s success today. A business idea doesn’t come out of nowhere. There’s always a story behind it, and a good one, if you ask the right questions.

Insider Media Ltd •

2025 Apprentice winner was initially rejected by the show - now his firm is planning overseas expansion - Insider Media

The winner of the 2025 edition of The Apprentice, Dean Franklin, has revealed to Insider that he was rejected from the show the year before reapplying and ultimately winning, with his air conditioning business securing the £250,000 prize and now looking to expand overseas.

Franklin, who founded ADL Air Conditioning in 2020, had applied to the show the year before, but was told at the audition "you’re not giving me anything."

"And to be fair, he was right," the 35-year old said. "On the day of...
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“This will overtake coffee as the number one morning drink by 2032” says Dragons’ Den star - Insider Media

An  entrepreneur who secured investment on Dragons' Den has told Insider that his product will overtake coffee as the number one morning beverage by 2032, turning his business into a billion-pound brand.

Liam Browne secured a £50,000 investment for Full Power Cacao from Peter Jones, Steven Bartlett and Gary Neville after they were wowed by the founder's entrepreneurial journey, from the brink of going to prison after his mother’s sudden death, to discovering the magic of cacao in Guatemala.

Ca...
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“Competing at Wimbledon fuelled my relentless need to win - now my yacht finance platform is sailing towards becoming a $1bn business” - Insider Media

"I love the fact my business has competitors," a former Grand Slam competitor has told Insider, who has since launched a Manchester-based yacht accounting software provider.

Ian Flanagan, a promising young tennis player, made headlines at 22 when he defeated Mark Philippoussis, the previous year's Wimbledon runner-up. 

He went on to play at the iconic tournament in London but was forced to retire young due to injury. "I got injured and had to stop, but I’d always been somewhat entrepreneurial,...
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“I got dumped, hated my job, and taught myself fashion - now I’m collaborating with my favourite brands and creating something people can’t get anywhere else” - Insider Media

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Insider Media Ltd •

“I was bullied at school for my speech impediment - now I’ve doubled the turnover at a historic moving company” - Insider Media

Simon Hood overcame childhood bullying and a speech impediment to buy out a 140-year-old moving company. Now, with a growing gulf between the number of Brits leaving and those arriving, he’s steering the Liverpool-based firm through a major shift in UK migration.

Hood, owner of John Mason International, says his experiences of losing his dad at a young age, facing financial hardship, and growing up with a speech impediment shaped the leadership style he brings to the business today.

“Growing u...
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“Losing my dad at a young age pushed me to quit my West End career and launch an interior design business with no experience beyond an online course” - Insider Media

"I trained in dance, not business. Drama and dancing were my world - but looking back, I always had it in me to become an entrepreneur,” a Manchester-based founder tells Insider.

Simon Mayhew started his interior design company TXTURED two years ago with no qualifications except for an online course. Until a few weeks ago, he was a sole trader, undertaking an array of projects across the UK. 

"I didn’t have a degree or any formal qualifications in interior design. I tried to get an internship,...
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“My father’s dementia inspired me to launch my AI platform - now I’m taking it to San Francisco to build a unicorn” - Insider Media

"Our vision is a world where technology adapts to human behavior, not the other way around," the founder of a Manchester-based AI firm tells Insider. 

Patrick Smith arrived in the UK from Norway ten years ago and couldn't even speak English - now he says he is taking his platform zally to San Francisco to "take over the world". 

zally builds advanced AI technology that interprets human behavior to enhance security and identity verification. The platform analyses how people interact in real tim...
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“One of our ancestors made watches for Queen Victoria - jewellery is in our DNA and we’re redefining what a family business means” - Insider Media

"Our stars aligned and we were [always] meant to work together in this business," the owners of a renowned Blackburn-based jeweller tell Insider. 

Ainsworth Jewellers was founded by Phil Ainsworth's great great grandfather, Joseph Ainsworth, in 1870. He now runs the business alongside his wife, Helen Dimmick.

Dimmick joined as a director in 2023, bringing a strong background in jewellery as a gemologist and specialist at Phillips, now known as Bonhams. She says she was born to be a jeweller, a...
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“We’ve had thousands of franchise enquiries since January” - coffee chain founder on being born to Brew Itt and why matcha craze is here to stay - Insider Media

The founder of a Liverpool-based coffee chain that’s franchising across the UK has told Insider how he plans to preserve its Scouse roots and family-like culture, even as interest pours in from overseas.

Jack Brewitt, founder of 92 Degrees Coffee, launched the franchise after years in the tech industry showed him how American coffee shops like Blue Bottle and Philz acted as creative hubs, inspiring him to create a similar space that channels Liverpool’s unique energy and community spirit. 

Bre...
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“I grew up in a wheelchair, now I run a £3.5m health tech company” - Insider Media

The founder of a West Sussex tech company has told Insider how growing up with a rare muscle weakening illness fuelled his determination to establish his £3.5m-turnover firm.

Josh Hough, founder and chief executive of Slinfold-based home care software company CareLineLive, was born with a rare genetic condition called Minicore Myopathy, which meant walking was difficult and he often had to attend school in a wheelchair.

"From an early age, I learned I could prove people wrong," said Hough.

"I...
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“My late grandfather’s hot chocolate inspired me to start a chocolatier - now we’re planning to bring our range to retailers nationwide” - Insider Media

An Australian entrepreneur has told Insider how his grandfather’s hot chocolate technique inspired him to launch a Kent-based chocolatier, now known for constructing the UK’s largest Easter egg.

Darren Litton launched Cocoba as a pop-up kiosk in Brent Cross Shopping Centre in 2012, serving hot chocolates and handmade chocolate treats. A year later, the first Cocoba Chocolate Café opened in Bluewater Shopping Centre.

Now, the chocolatier has opened its first UK franchise store in Maidenhead, ba...
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“I started my business with a £14 box of scrap from a charity shop - now we’re expecting our £4m turnover to triple by the end of this year” - Insider Media

The founder of a Crowborough-based women's clothing brand has revealed to Insider how she turned a hobby into a business that is expected to deliver an eight-figure turnover without any external funding, following a surge in online orders which forced the site to shut down for several days.

Alie Mackintosh launched East Sussex-based AYM Studio in 2012 after teaching herself how to sew and make clothes whilst in her final year at the University of the Arts London. She started with a £14 box of s...
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“Being in the military taught me to be flexible and adaptable. Now I’m using those skills to lead the regeneration of Salford’s university campus.” - Insider Media

"There was this saying in the army: you cut one and we all bleed," Mark Wantling, chief infrastructure officer at University of Salford, tells Insider.

"It means we share in the success together, but we also share in the difficult times together. People understand when we're trying to tackle a problem together, I'm in it just as much as they are."

Following a stint in the military, Wantling began his career in IT at the university, where he transformed the department to align with the wider st...
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From the brink of closure to plans for a game-changing motorsports centre - the tale of Buckmore Park - Insider Media

There is a major gap in the market for the coverage of motorsports to be improved - the daughter of a former Formula 1 champion and her husband, who co-own Chatham's Buckmore Park, have told Insider how they are setting out to address it.

Leonora Martell-Surtees, daughter of seven-time Grand Prix motorcycle World Champion John Surtees (who previously owned Buckmore), and her husband Richard, are seeking permission to build 'The Paddock'.

The Paddock is a proposed 20,000 sq ft motorsport-themed...