NetWorks Issue 17: The Design Issue

Talking to Paul Whitnell

Naomi Thrower, the Brand Strategist, talks to Paul about Cultivating Community, Music, and Social Impact.

Paul Whitnell’s journey through life has been a tapestry woven with threads of community, music, and social impact. From his humble beginnings in a close-knit Irish family to his ventures in the music industry and forays into politics, every step has led him to where he stands today as President of BITA (British and Irish Trading Alliance). In this interview, he shares the essence of BITA, its origins, values, and aspirations.

Growing up in a family with limited means but abundant love, Paul imbibed the values of trust, honesty, and giving from an early age. Paul reminisces, “I couldn’t have everything other kids did, which really shaped me as a person.”

Not one for education, Paul went straight into work at 17; “I just knew studying was not for me, but I had drive, enthusiasm and an absolute hunger for life.” So, while all his pals had their sights set on law and politics, Paul got himself a shop delivering bathrooms. “I was always up for a chat and helping people out. What started as taking bathrooms from A to B would always end in a van full of other people’s stuff too. Helping whoever I could along the way. Well, I’d just talk to this person and that, and it grew from there”.

These values became the bedrock of his endeavors, shaping his approach to business, music, and philanthropy.

The Musical Interlude

Paul’s foray into the music industry was marked by his admiration for talented individuals and a keen eye for opportunity. Managing bands and organizing events propelled him into a world of creativity and collaboration. Yet, it was his heartfelt endeavors, such as crowdfunding an album for the late Irish singer Christy Dignam, that truly exemplified his commitment to using his resources for meaningful impact.

He also in 1999 started something called ‘Song School’, where he bought recording artists who were on breaks between albums, into schools to teach kids how to write songs. “So we would go in with a recording machine and I would bring in someone from various bands like the Corrs, Picture House and Garratt Wall, and they’d be going: WOW.”

One time when the artists were running late, I sat with the kids and said, “let’s write a song about Kosovo. This was during the war, and we wrote a line; “Mother fell outside, Father had to hide” and I just went WOW.”

With the help of professionals, we built this song called Candle for Kosovo. And it was just fucking amazing. I was wetting myself in the studio as I was in control, I had all the buttons. I was with the kids and artists, and we were recording ourselves.

I sent it to Radio 2 and said, you’ve got to play this in the morning, because of what we’ve done here with the kids and all this stuff, this is just a fascinating thing to do.

RTE2 played it at 8am as they had a section about being mindful for Kosovo, and the next thing Grapevine records rang me and said, “OMG we’ve got to release this”.

I got permission to take kids on tour, release it we did, and we sold 5,000 copies in one day, reached number 1, and built a school in Kosovo with the proceeds. This experience taught me the power of collective action.

Blood sports

Then I got involved in politics. Billy Kelleher didn’t get elected on the first election and I turned around to Billy and I said, I’ll get you elected. And I did, for 25 years. Every four years I used to come in for two weeks and run his election. It was like a blood sport, it was brilliant.

We ran a meticulous campaign, knocking on every door in the constituency. Sometimes people voting for the other guy would try and hold him up at the door, to stop him getting around. To those people I said, ‘blue shirt, stop playing game! To the point!’.

And that’s where my love of politics came in. Billy’s now a very successful politician. That’s how I learned about a common system in Ireland. Where you have a street boss, looking after different roads, then during an election, you bring all the commons together.

Launching BITA

BITA emerged from Paul’s desire to create a community rooted in these values. Unlike conventional networking organizations, BITA prioritizes giving over receiving, fostering a culture of trust and generosity. Paul’s disdain for bureaucracy and red tape led him to build BITA from the ground up, relying on the generosity and tenacity of its members to fuel its growth.

“Politics is where I learned how to structure BITA. I opened up chapters; they are the street bosses. In every area. We are not a member gatherer. We have around 850 people for that reason, and we have a drop off of around 20% as they are here for the wrong reasons.

They are takers. Not givers. The fox dressed in sheep’s clothing. I felt vulnerable to that as I was always a giver, I was always being taken advantage of, until I created this community of givers. Of people who don’t do that. There’s honesty, there’s trust.”

Back to School

Noel Elliott introduced me to my now good friend, Niall Mellon, who was running a school’s charity and it needed help. I thought, I need to see this for myself, so we went out to South Africa and we saw the whole set up. We went to the townships, we went to the literacy hubs and then we spoke with some diplomats and just thought, this is part of BITA.

We decided on a collaboration. And this year we will bring 100 people to the project on the 16th November and we will build at least two schools if not three. From that, we will go and take 100x girls and guys from the township and bring them into the literacy hub. It will make such a massive difference as you are creating and breaking a culture.

The Ethos

We changed into greedy, commercial people. The more we got, the more we wanted. This is what they termed the Celtic tiger. They were going around with racehorses and BMWs, and I will always remember when the crash came in 2008. People who couldn’t live without money. There was depression, suicide. It was awful.

Thinking OMG if we don’t do something about this, we’re going to be in trouble. The demise of better practice was a serious worry to me. And I wanted to create an organisation that appreciated tradition, appreciated the values we were reared from like honesty, transparency, passion. And deliver on it.

The ethos of BITA extends beyond business networking, encompassing social responsibility and global impact. Initiatives like building schools in South Africa exemplify BITA’s commitment to creating positive change, both locally and internationally.

As BITA continues to evolve and expand its reach, Paul envisions a future where its legacy transcends his own contributions. Through initiatives like BITAx, he seeks to nurture a new generation of leaders who share his passion for community, integrity, and collective action.

In Paul’s words, BITA is more than just an organization—it’s a movement. A movement driven by the collective efforts of individuals who believe in the power of community, the value of integrity, and the importance of making a difference in the world.

EVERYTHING I AM, I HAVE TURNED INTO AN ORGANISATION. IT’S VERY EASY FOR ME TO SPEAK ABOUT IT AND BE IT, BECAUSE I ACTUALLY AM IT. THAT’S WHY I NEVER NEED A SCRIPT. I WROTE THE SCRIPT!

Paul and Philomena Whitnell working on a school with the Mellon Educate Program in South Africa.

Naomi Thrower and Paul Whitnell at the BITA Kent office.

This interview has been brought to you humbly and honestly, with awe and amazement of an incredible story.

- By Naomi Thrower, Freelance Marketing Director, Lover of People and Planet. BITA fangirl.