Joe Denham - Serial Entrepreneur

Joe Denham has a diverse background, moving from a career which started in Barclays Bank in the early 80’s, into data communications (witnessing the birth of the internet) then owning an innovative online delivered IT training company based in Dubai which was sold under a NASDAQ merger in the late 90’s; to having his own show on Shopping TV for a number of years; to owning a 120 acre farm in France (producing horse feed) before co-founding the famous VegTrug. 

Having retired three times, it would be fair to describe Joe as a serial entrepreneur! He was recently described by a Board Director at Wayfair as ‘the most interesting man I have met in the last decade’!

Joe, together with his business partner Paul Owen co-founded VegTrug in 2009 and it has proven to be a massive success in the garden industry. Now exporting globally, the business has opened a US subsidiary based in Pennsylvania to support sales efforts in America and a second subsidiary in Germany. 

Since 2012, the business is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Takasho Group based in Osaka Japan and publicly traded on the Tokyo Stock exchange.

The original VegTrug has now sold more than 1 million units worldwide and has become an iconic design. The VegTrug is a product which appeals to young children, the elderly and everyone in between! It is fair to say that the development of the VegTrug business has helped shape people’s attitude to growing their own food and in some small way contributed to the ‘grow your own’ revolution that has continued to gather momentum over the last 15 years. In October 2023 Joe took a step back from the day to day running of VegTrug and is now the Chairman of VegTrug Limited; VegTrug GmbH and VegTrug USA Inc. 

In a secondary position, Joe is also Chairman of the Board at Gardenex, the Export Trade Association representing British garden product manufacturers. Joe regularly mentors new businesses within his industry and beyond, often giving his time free particularly helping to train new salespeople and advise on export sales strategies.

Not one for sitting still, Joe has also started a new venture - DogDoov. After a year of research, design work, setup and preparation, DogDoov was brought into fruition in 2024 and can now be found in pet stores and B&Q online.

After realising that the market for dog beds was dominated by cheap, unattractive products that, in many cases were not fit for purpose and certainly were not very friendly to the environment. The idea for DogDoov was born! DogDoov allows the customer to take the cover and net home and utilise old bedding and clothing which would otherwise have been thrown away. This simple idea has the added benefit of allowing your dog to smell your clothing and therefore be more likely to take to their new bed straight away.

Joe has also found time to write a book! ‘The Sales Professional’ will be available in 2025. The book will appeal to anyone who has a strong work ethic and wants to to succeed in sales.  This book not only seeks to help existing salespeople who want to succeed but it’s also for people who want help getting started in a career in sales. 

Joe has been married to Lesley for 30 years and they have four sons. He holds a commercial drone pilot license as well as a private helicopter license. His interests include collecting contemporary art and very fast cars!

Whilst we endeavour to ensure the attendance of our advertised speakers, exhibitors, vendors and displays, we cannot be held responsible for any last minute changes.
All timings are approximate and subject to change. We advise arriving as early as possible to avoid queues and missing any speakers or displays.