In the heart of the South West, a grassroots initiative is redefining how young entrepreneurs lead and grow their businesses — with Elliot Hyams at the forefront. As director of SPS Pouches Ltd and co-founder of Bournemouth’s NextGen Leaders Network, Hyams is helping early-stage companies find clarity and resilience in an era of rapid change.
The NextGen Leaders Network was launched in partnership with the Bournemouth Chamber of Trade & Commerce and has quickly become a draw for local founders, solo entrepreneurs, and first-time directors. Its May gathering at Neo provided a platform for honest conversation and quiet leadership — where momentum is built not through flash, but through steady guidance and community support.
“There’s a huge appetite for new young leadership,” Hyams says. “People are tired of the showmanship surrounding entrepreneurship and networking — the chasing, the stress, the image. They want to build things that work, with good people surrounding them.”
At SPS Pouches, Hyams works directly with SMEs across a range of industries — particularly in food, e-commerce, and wellness — to help them shift to fully recyclable packaging solutions. His approach, as recently featured in the British Plastics Federation, addresses the financial and design myths that often discourage small businesses from adopting sustainable options.
From one-on-one strategic support to sustainable packaging advice, Hyams is cultivating a practical, non-performative style of leadership. As pressures mount from both economic challenges and sustainability regulations, initiatives like NextGen are emerging as invaluable lifelines for businesses seeking to scale without losing their sense of purpose.
