Veterans mean business: How ex-military entrepreneurs build success after service

Here’s what we cover:

A soft landing for veterans starting their own businesses

This year, Stephen’s belief in the entrepreneurial nature of veterans inspired him—along with CEO at Hermes Digital, and fellow veteran, Stephen “Morgs” Morgan—to create British Veteran Owned (BVO), a community that connects and supports veteran-founded businesses.

Morgs explains that even with all the skills needed to become a successful businessperson, the transition out of uniform and into ownership is still tricky. A familiar feeling for entrepreneurs everywhere—the fraught firsts that shape the uncertain road ahead.

After seventeen years in the Intelligence Corps, with tough tours in Afghanistan, Iraq, and North Africa, he reflects that his own hardest moment came not in the field, but the day he left.

“Probably the most stressful period of my military career, was, what next?”

What next? It’s the kind of question that marks a turning point in any life: the closing of one chapter and the uncomfortable start of another.

British Veteran Owned offers a ‘soft landing’ for Vets whose ‘next’ involves starting their own business. Stephen’s principle that ingenuity needs only a little assistance to flourish anchors their mission today.

“Veterans want to help” Stephen puts it simply. “What makes the difference is purpose: a reason to get up in the morning, to go to work, to do something they love. With that, everything else follows.”

Leaving the structure of the armed forces can feel like stepping off a cliff edge. Many veterans look instinctively for the same camaraderie and guidance that once held them steady. That’s where BVO shows its strength, true to the duty they’ve never left behind.

As Stephen describes it: “We run BVO at a cost to ourselves, it’s a labour of love really, but if there’s a chance to channel trade to a veteran, we’ll take it.” 

How veteran success multiplies

That labour of love is already bearing results. With more than 800 veterans already signed up across 400 businesses, their vision to build a supportive network that carries service forward is already demonstrating its power.

“If you see this logo on a company’s website, on a plumber’s van, or on a carpenter’s toolbox,” Stephen says, “you know that person has had a life before business. You know they’ve got integrity, courage, and that they’ll put service before self. If we need insurance, we’ll look first to our own list. That way, veteran success multiplies.”

Practical support that helps veteran businesses grow

Behind this badge of recognition sits practical support: advice on finance, insurance, marketing, and growth. Membership is free, built on an ethos that those who succeed will mentor those just starting out.

An advisory board lends seasoned expertise, while workshops tackle the often-overlooked essentials like cash flow and procurement. BVO commits to promoting members’ services, so veterans aren’t shut out of opportunity.

Though they’re non-profit, for them it’s not charity; it’s a system of solidarity that keeps their whole network strong.

There’s a deeper lesson in that ethos. Service doesn’t end—and it doesn’t have to be military to matter either.

Service as a business value: lessons every entrepreneur can use

This is a truth any founder can connect with: the idea that your business is a continuation of what you stand for.

When growth is tied to contribution, when mentoring is a given, lifting others as they climb, resilience multiplies. That is the veterans’ code carried into commerce: service as the backbone, purpose as the driver.

It’s why their companies endure—and why their model speaks to any leader who wants their legacy to be measured not only in what they built, but in how many others they carried forward.

Morgs puts it plainly. “Asking for help isn’t always the easiest thing to do. For ex-servicemen especially. That’s why community matters. We’ve all been there before. We’ve all lived the same story. We’ve all had those periods of imposter syndrome.”

It’s a shared vulnerability—but not a weakness, it’s the grit to keep moving forward. Stephen is clear: “Veterans don’t want pity. They want purpose.”

The veterans’ code: Purpose, mentorship, and resilience

For them, it’s about breaking down the quiet barriers that make starting a company feel so daunting. Stephen recalls his own first steps: “Do I open a bank account first? Register with Companies House? Hire people? Call the taxman?” He laughs at the mistakes he made, and insists they shouldn’t be repeated in silence.

BVO exist to make the transition softer, the climb higher, and to turn veteran entrepreneurship into a new form of service to society that strengthens the social fabric, not just the bottom line. It’s a model of entrepreneurship that gives back as much as it grows.

At its heart, BVO also redefines service itself. The story doesn’t stop when the insignia comes off—it carries on through entrepreneurship. Service instead becomes creating jobs, building trust, and contributing to society in new ways, and Sage has become part of their kit.

Morgs lays out the relentless barrage of admin they faced before Sage with a wince:

“Spreadsheets, receipts, manual invoices. You’re talking days and days every month. It just ate up time.”

Spreadsheets were scattered troops that couldn’t keep up with the pace of their growth. Sage solutions could—with Accounting, Payroll, HR, and Copilot, all marching in formation.

“Sage Copilot is literally like having a business administrative partner at your fingertips,” Stephen shares with the steadiness of someone who knows the value of backup. “It reminds me there are things I don’t know, gives me insights, makes links I might have missed. It’s brilliant.”

Saving time and money

For Morgs, the difference is clear as a bugle call: “Sage has saved us four to five days every month. It’s been absolutely instrumental in streamlining our processes.”

Those days gained aren’t just hours off the clock—they’re resources redeployed into growth, connection, and purpose. Technology here doesn’t replace the human at the helm; but it frees them to lead the charge, while freeing up finances for the directive they’re driving.

As Morgs points out, “Sage HR alone saves BVO around £15–18k a year”—tangible money for any venture, which they channel into supporting members with advertising, sponsorships, and other practical help.

How admin accountability builds trust with donors

Transparency matters too. “People who donate often want to know where it’s going. With Sage Accounting, one click shows exactly when it was donated, where it’s been spent, and how it’s been allocated—all in a format anyone can understand.”

That ease of use is critical for founders without a technical background. “I’m not IT literate at all,” Morgs admits. “But Sage is intuitive. You log in, and everything’s where you expect it to be.”

It’s just as straightforward for outside accountants: “The flexibility to let an accountant go straight into our system using their own login portal is really important for us,” Stephen stresses.

He values how the software teaches as it goes. “What Sage does is put a process in place, with help always there. If I want to know what something means, I can click and find the answer. Or I’ll go into the Sage community, where someone else has had the same problem and shared a solution. That kind of community learning is really handy.”

For Morgs, it’s a reminder that whether it’s veterans helping veterans through BVO, or peers sharing advice through Sage, progress happens in community.

In Stephen’s empowered words: “All we veterans want is a fair crack, a clear purpose, and the opportunity to be successful. That’s what British Veteran Owned provides, with the help of Sage.”

So convinced they are of the benefit, BVO now offers every member six months of free Sage software.

It’s a practical extension of their philosophy: proof that service continues through tools and support that make the road less lonely, the venture steadier, and the campaign sustainable.