The Bottom Line

Civil war in Sierra Leone, political unrest in Ukraine, the Japanese tsunami and Hurricane Sandy on the east coast of the US - three guests tell Evan Davis how they led businesses through periods of unexpected and extended turmoil. Guests : Peter Kaye, Director of Business Development, Pilgrims Group Bryan Disher, Ukraine Country Manager, PWC Mary Bahsoon, Co-owner Bennimix Producer : Rosamund Jones.

Making money from old phones, engines and plastic bottles is the topic for Evan Davis and guests. How do you ensure that you collect what others throw away? How much profit is there really to be had from creating new from old? And why aren't milk bottle tops quite the colour they once were? Guests Charlo Carabott, co-founder & CEO Mazuma Mobile Matt Bulley, managing director Caterpillar Reman Europe Chris Dow, Founder & CEO Closed Loop Recycling Producer : Rosamund Jones.

Would you tell your boss you had depression? In The Bottom Line this week, Evan Davis hears from three successful business people who talk openly about what it's like to experience severe mental illness whilst running their companies. They'll explain the risks and rewards of going public about mental ill health problems: the reaction from investors and the impact on staff. And we'll hear why being open about mental illness can lead to a happier, healthier workplace.Guests:Lord Stevenson of Coddenham, entrepreneur and former Chairman of HBOS and Pearson; Andrea Woodside, Founder, Minding Work Limited; and Charlie Mowat, Managing Director, The Clean SpaceProducer: Sally Abrahams.

Can you conquer the world by selling only one product? Many companies start small, focusing their energies on a single item, with plans to expand into other areas once the business takes off. But not everyone wants to diversify. Some prefer to do one thing and do it well, rather than risk diluting the brand and perhaps also the quality of the goods. In this edition of The Bottom Line, Evan Davis talks to three companies that have stuck with the core product that made them a success in the first place. They'll discuss the benefits of keeping focused, the challenges of staying ahead of the game and explore the perils of relying on just one source of income. Does it make good business sense to put all your eggs in one basket?Guests:Vince Gunn, Managing Director, Crocs EuropeCarolyn Komminsk, Head of Creative, MaclarenBill Noble, Managing Director, WD40 CompanyProducer: Sally Abrahams.

How big is the market for halal - not just food, but holidays, fashion and music too? Muslim consumers - and how best to serve them - are the topics this week. Evan Davis talks to entrepreneurs who think they know the answer and asks how much can established companies learn from them.Guests :Shelina Janmohamed, Ogilvy Noor Elnur Seyidli, HalalBooking.com Shazia Saleem, ieat foodsProducer : Rosamund Jones.

Making money from products with a controversial image is the topic for Evan Davis and his guests who represent companies selling drugs and sex toys. These companies are testing our morals and the regulations set up to protect them. So how do you market products that many people disapprove of? And how do you manage the social and business opprobrium you encounter?Guests : Jean Rasbridge, founder ECigaretteDirect.co.uk Andy Williams, co-founder Medicine Man Denver Neal Slateford, co-founder LoveHoneyProducer : Rosamund Jones.

The new economy based on bitcoins, the computer-generated crypto-currency, is the subject for discussion. What can you buy with them and as the market fluctuates wildly, can investors hold their nerve? The programme will look at how the bitcoin craze began and whether the world really does need another currency. Evan Davis's guests are from new companies hoping to cash in - one trades bitcoins, another stores them and the third enables you to spend them online.Contributors :Marc Warne, Bittylicious Nicolas Cary, Blockchain Moe Levin, BitpayProducer : Rosamund Jones.

Can you keep business safe from hackers? Many companies now feel besieged by constant attacks and few can claim not to have been targeted. In the first of a new series of the award-winning The Bottom Line Evan Davis and guests discuss the anatomy of a cyber attack - where the threats are coming from and how best to respond. And they'll ask - should businesses be more honest about the security breaches they've faced?Guests Richard Knowlton, Group Corporate Security Director, Vodafone Rashmi Knowles, Chief Security Architect, RSA Seth Berman, Executive MD, Stroz FriedbergProducer : Sally Abrahams.

Serving the super-rich: what do the seriously wealthy do with their money? How do they preserve or spend their multi-million or even billion pound fortunes? And who is helping them manage those assets? With more billionaires in the world than ever before, working for the very rich is a growth industry. Whether finding staff for their superyacht or helping them give away the money, there's a raft of businesses ready to serve the ultra high net worth individual. Evan Davis talks to three firms whose job is to serve the wealthy elite.Guests:Richard Wilson, CEO, Billionaire Family OfficeKaren Clark, Director and Head of Private Clients, SandAireLucy Challenger, Manager, Bespoke BureauProducer: Sally Abrahams.

Turning up the heat: the new energy companies breaking into a market dominated by big established firms. Evan Davis meets two small entrants to the sector to find out how they're gaining market share. Is the strategy to compete on price, customer service or green credentials? He'll discuss the role of the price comparison websites in encouraging customers to switch providers and hear how some smaller companies are cutting gas and electricity bills when their bigger rivals aren't.Guests:Dale Vince, Founder and CEO, EcotricityStephen Fitzpatrick, Founder and Managing Director, Ovo EnergyAnn Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.comProducer: Sally Abrahams.

Corporate turnaround and transformational tales. Evan Davis and guests discuss how companies fail, struggle and find their way again.Guests:Bruno Cercley, CEO of Rossignol Group Harriet Green OBE, CEO of Thomas Cook Group Martyn Gibbs, CEO of Game Retail LtdProducer: Kent DePinto.

Chocolate is a big business as well as a delicious indulgence. Evan Davis and guests discuss how this global industry is tackling the pressures of rising food prices, speculation and climate change.Guests:Jonathan Horrell, Director of Global Sustainability of Mondelez International Sophi Tranchell, Managing Director of Divine Chocolate Kojo Amoo-Gottfried, Country Director of Cargill GhanaProducer: Kent DePinto.

Self-improvement: If you want to look better, feel better, perform better, there's no shortage of help available. Whether it's cosmetic surgery for the perfect body, fitness programmes to boost self-esteem, or self-help books to improve the mind, there's plenty of choice. But do they promise the world and fail to deliver - or give you the strength to achieve the personal growth you desire? Evan Davis and guests discuss the industry of making your life better.Guests: Jon Congdon, President and Co-Founder, Beachbody.com Carole Tonkinson, Publisher, Harper NonFictionJohn Ryan, Founder and Chairman, Make Yourself AmazingProducer: Sally Abrahams.

Business leaders spend their lives climbing the corporate ladder, so what happens when it is time to step off? Evan Davis and guests discuss life after CEO.Guests: Lord Browne of Madingley, former Chief Executive of BP Kate Wilson, former MD of Scholastic UK, Managing Director of Nosy Crow Robert Polet, former CEO of Gucci GroupProducer: Kent DePinto.

Successful TV formats like Big Brother, Pop Idol, X-Factor and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire are sold and broadcast all round the world, netting their creators billions of pounds. But how can you protect such a valuable asset? And are too many copycat versions saturating the market and crushing original ideas? Evan Davis finds out from those at the top of the lucrative global industry of TV formats.Guests: Charlie Parsons, Creator of Survivor and CEO, Castaway Television Productions Louise Pedersen, Managing Director, all3media international Ricardo Pereira, TV Globo Director for EuropeProducer: Sally Abrahams.

Business school or school of life? An MBA from a top business school is what defines many of today's high powered CEO's - but is the qualification worth the cost or are would-be entrepreneurs better off learning business acumen in the real world? Evan Davis debates with guests.Guests: Colin Drummond, Chairman of Viridor and Harvard MBA graduate Kim Winser, former CEO of Pringle, now CEO of Winser London Glenn Sykes, Associate Dean of The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, LondonProducer: Kent DePinto.

The "sharing" economy is the topic of discussion for Evan Davis & his guests in the first of a new series of The Bottom Line. The market is built around renting out your possessions to strangers and entrepreneurs have piled in to enable us to share our homes, cars, bikes, clothes, tools and much more besides. At its heart is the idea that business works better if it collaborates, rather than competes, with other companies. How disruptive might these innovative enterprises prove to be? How much profit can they make (and is that the point anyway?).Guests :Even Heggernes, UK & Ireland Country Manager, Airbnb Ali Clabburn, Founder, Liftshare Fiona Disegni, Founder, Rentez-VousProducer : Rosamund Jones.

Decorating your home is big business - in the UK and around the world. In China and India the home decor market is evolving fast - but will the result be a global homogenous style? Who sets the trends? And what do you do if your products lose their fashionable edge? Evan Davis and guests discuss the volatile world of design.Guests: Kelly Hoppen, founder Kelly Hoppen Interiors Andrew Graham, CEO Graham and Brown Lois Jacobs, Global CEO FitchProducer: Rosamund Jones.

It's the lifeblood of the world's economy, moving most of our imports and exports and around the globe. But shipping is changing: vessels and ports are getting bigger and competition for trade is coming from the Far East.Evan Davis and guests from the world of shipping discuss how ports are run and how the shipping business manages the risk of accidents and piracy.Guests:James Cooper - CEO of Associated British Ports. , a private company which owns and runs 21 ports in the UK. Kenneth MacLeod - Chairman of Stena Line UK and President of the UK Chamber of Shipping. Rupert Atkin - CEO of Talbot Underwriting and Chairman of the Lloyd's Market Association.Producer - Smita Patel.

Infrastructure projects can take decades to complete and are meant to last for generations. Planning for new rail networks, roads, bridges, airports - in the UK and overseas - all require assumptions and predictions about the future. What shape will the country's economy be in? Will the population grow or shrink? How might travel patterns change? And will the political regimes support the project over the years? Evan Davis and guests discuss the problems and pitfalls of planning for the long view.Guests: Alison Munro, CEO HS2 Tushar Prabhu, co-owner, Pell Frischmann Richard Deakin, CEO NATS Producer: Rosamund Jones.