How one founder launched a global talent agency from his teenage bedroom

Entrepreneurship runs deep in the Varley family and something that Andy Varley, CEO of talent management company Insanity Group, knows all too well. His great-grandfather owned an electrical firm that has been passed down through generations of Varley men and there was an expectation that he would take over the family business. But instead of washing machine repair, Varley had music running through his veins. 

After being brought up on a diet of classic Motown and The Beatles, Varley put his entrepreneurial talents to work in 1997 when he became the manager of his friend’s band at the tender age of 17, organising gigs and prepping them for battle of the bands competitions

Humble beginnings

“I come from a working class background so there was no injection of cash from my parents. I was working two jobs, like many kids do at that age; I had a part time job in a shoe shop and I also worked at my local football club. I reinvested everything I earned back into the business,” he says.