Andrew Needham

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Your time at the University

I chose Edinburgh because it had a brilliant reputation, was a beautiful city and because it was in Scotland so would present me with a completely different experience to living in the south of England. While studying History and Politics I was involved in setting up Student Pages with three other friends. Student Pages was an A-Z telephone directory – a yellow pages but for students - with loads of discount vouchers in the back that I went on to set up in every major student town around the country. In the end Student Pages was published in 25 UK cities, had a print run of 300,000 copies and a readership of one million. I sold the business to a subsidiary of DMGT in 2000.  I loved my time at Edinburgh; the combination of university and city life was very special - getting to know Scotland, the Scots, their beautiful beaches, mountains and countryside was a big highlight. I made loads of friends, many of whom I am still in touch with today.

Do things you wouldn’t otherwise have done. Pursue your passions.

Andrew Needham

Tell us about your experiences since leaving the University

Since leaving the University I have followed an entrepreneurial career path having set up three companies. After Student Pages I set up Face and Pulsar, a research and social data analytics company that I then sold to Cello Plc. Currently I am the CEO of HeadBox, the UK’s first on-line marketplace for inspiring meeting, off-site and event spaces. We have over 4,000 unique spaces on the platform mainly in London but also in Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and Bristol. We would love to open in Edinburgh and will be doing so later this year. My experience and time at Edinburgh fuelled my entrepreneurial spirit and I haven’t looked back since.  

Alumni wisdom

Make the most of every day at Edinburgh – make the most of your studies: work hard, make the most of what you do, see and feel while you are there. Try everything. Do stuff. Get outside your comfort zone. Do things you wouldn’t otherwise have done. Pursue your passions. Travel to see the world during your long holidays. Make friends with people from different walks of life and with different interests. Make the most of the time you have available outside your course. This period of your life is unique.