Dez Derry has bravely lifted the lid on his troubled childhood that saw him go into the care system at the age of just four.
The award-winning businessman is best known as the founder of Blume, the leading customer acquisition specialist for the legal sector, but has spoken publicly about his abusive childhood.
Speaking at BusinessCloud’s FUEL Manchester 2024 event, Derry reduced many in the audience to tears as he recounted being physically abused as a child as well as suffering years of racism.
“There aren’t enough people who open up who are from backgrounds like mine who on paper shouldn’t be in the positions that they’re in,” he said.
However, he insisted he didn’t think of himself as a victim and believed the challenges he faced as a child became a ‘superpower’ for him in business.
Derry’s story began when he was born into a traditional Indian family in Walsall in 1982, the eldest of three brothers.
Social services stepped in after he suffered years of physical abuse and he went into foster care at the age of four.
However, he said his prayers were answered when he and his two brothers were adopted by a loving white family when he was eight.
The adoption of Indian heritage children by a white British family was one of the first of its kind in the UK in the 1990s.
“We were told it had never happened before,” he said. “It had to go through the courts, it took a long time for a number of reasons: they weren’t the right colour, they weren’t the right culture, they were saying they were too old, so there were lots of obstacles and hurdles there.
“Being adopted is probably the luckiest thing to ever happen to me – without it I physically would not be here today.
“We were working class, money was always tight, being in and out of foster care, and not having that stability at those early stages.
“It’s only in the last few years where I’ve felt the rug was not going to get pulled from under me.
“Every job that I’ve had I’ve always felt really lucky to have that opportunity, and being petrified that I’m going to lose it. Because if I lost it, I could lose everything again.
“But I would say it’s also been a bit of a superpower because it’s just made me so resilient, and I never give up.”
Derry quickly showed his entrepreneurial talent and landed a job at the age of 19 selling nail varnish.
“I always wanted to wear a suit and it taught me a lot about sales,” he said. “I then joined Yell selling Yellow Pages advertising and became Yell’s top performer for seven years.”
In 2012 he launched the digital marketing consultancy that became mmadigital and finally Blume, specialising in finding customer acquisition leads for the legal sector.
“I always wanted to inspire others and show that you can achieve your potential through hard work, drive and determination, regardless of your life situation or experiences,” he said.
He set himself a target of becoming a £20m turnover business and took two rounds of investment from Rockpool and private equity firm Sun European Partners in 2022.
Earlier this year Derry stepped down as CEO of Blume and told the audience at FUEL Manchester that he was at a crossroads in his life.
He said: “All of a sudden I realised I’d hit my lifetime goals and it was like ‘s***, what now?’
“I hope my story can give hope to anyone who has been abused, in care, adopted, endured racism or failed at school.
“Thanks to the love of my parents, Chris and Al, I came out the other side and I hope my story can inspire other people. I owe them everything.”
FUEL Manchester was sponsored by GM Business Growth Hub, Bruntwood SciTech and the University of Salford Business School.
Derry joined fellow speakers Steve Byrne, CEO, Travel Counsellors; Clare Roberts, founder and CEO, Kids Planet; branding expert Issy Panton; Janine Smith, director, GM Business Growth Hub; Mehdi Kordi, former head coach of the Dutch Olympic cycling team; Guy Remond, co-founder, EHE Ventures; Elizabeth Scott MBE, executive director, Turing Innovation Catalyst Manchester; Dr Richard Whittle, University of Salford Business School; Jack Maher, head of flexible workspace, Bruntwood SciTech; and Frazer Durris, co-founder, Businesswise Solutions.
FUEL is unique in the calendar as it’s effectively two events in one, starting with a business breakfast and ending with a series of masterclass sessions for a select cohort of businesses.