Literary Characters who would have made great Startup Founders

by Startacus Admin

We’re rather chuffed that it’s World Book Day, not only because it means an impromptu literary liaison may well be in order this afternoon, but also because it's given us a much overdue opportunity to merge two of our favourite things; startups and books. Allow us to explain…

We have often wondered which of our favourite fictional characters would make the best startup founders...so to alleviate our curiosity we have come up with a highly fanciful and incredibly unscientific analysis of some of their more enterprising facets… enjoy!

Lord Voldemort (From The Harry Potter Series) - Whilst certainly not the most becoming of chaps, his Lordship commands a following any business founder would envy. We have always been of the opinion that were LV to turn his hand to something a little more constructive, such as digital marketing, he could be an entrepreneurial force to be reckoned with. His particular strength lies in his ability to get people to buy into an idea (however misguided), creating a power structure around himself which secures his position atop the proverbial ladder. So sure of the value of his ideas are his followers that they even ‘brand’ themselves with his iconic ‘Dark Mark’ as a declaration of allegiance and handy instant messaging service..."think the WhatsApp of the Wizarding World" (Thanks for that Heather from Uproar Comics!)

Sweeney Todd + Miss Lovett (From Sweeney Todd) - A business partnership made in hell? Perhaps... but we can't help but have a certain admiration for their pragmatism and ingenuity. I mean think about it… a barber with murderous intent operating above a pie shop experiencing a meat shortage…it took some serious entrepreneurial spirit to reach out and snag the obvious solution that so many others would have just politely ignored. In terms of innovation and dedication to a cause Mrs Lovett would certainly make a formidable startup founder…but perhaps in a catering establishment where the ingredients weren't the spoils of homicide.

Mary Poppins (From the Mary Poppins Series) - Magical abilities and umbrella-based transportation aside, her general demeanour is one which we feel would be rather well suited to the world of enterprise. Her pleasing countenance belies a steadfast love of order and efficiency which get the job done but promote a motivated and happy working environment…she knows that a ‘spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down’. She carries herself with a sturdy determination and reassuring confidence, which, whilst verging on arrogance leaves just enough
room for a little improvement, she is “practically perfect in every way”...but not quite.

Scarlett O’Hara (From Gone With The Wind) - Anyone who can save and ensure the future survival of a plantation using only her wits and a pair of green curtains must surely fall into the category of enterprising! She is testament to the age old adage “necessity is the mother of invention” using good old fashioned ingenuity to claw her way tooth and nail out of a series of increasingly dire situations. At the heart of her enterprising spirit are three things that all successful startups need… hard work, conviction and unwavering determination. In her most famous utterance she vows to ‘never be hungry again’- a promise which she simply refuses to relinquish. She is a grafter and doesn't expect those working for her to do anything that she wouldn't herself...whether it's picking cotton or ploughing a field, she leads by example and relies on her own mettle to get the job done.

The Grinch (From The Grinch Who Stole Christmas) - Perhaps the most lovable ‘bad guy’ of all Christmas stories he undoubtedly exhibits a wealth of enterprising prowess in his unwavering determination to destroy Christmas. His simple reversal of the standard “Santa Claus”social enterprise model is nothing short of genius and his willingness to improvise with the materials to hand display a real ‘can do’ attitude. He goes far and beyond the definition of determination and whilst he may be single-minded to the point of self destruction, we have no doubt that any startup with him at the wheel would have a pretty good chance of making some serious green.

We know that this is essentially a load of nonsense of absolutely no use to anyone, but it’s World Book Day and we thoroughly enjoyed mulling over the entrepreneurial potential of some of our favourite literary characters.

We would love to hear what you think, so why not drop us a tweet on @iamstartacus ?

Or if you're feeling in a fanciful kind of mood then take a look at some of these posts

What self starter animal would you be?

The Science of a successful Startup (finally explained!)

Thats so crazy it might just work, some of the worlds most bizzare businesses http://startacus.net/culture/that-

The Soundtrack to your startup story

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