Is bigger always better in business?

We are not yet two months into this new chapter in the life of Discovery; that of being part of a bigger group. It has been fascinating to sit with a previously would-be rival and to discuss the evolution and solutions of the businesses and the marketplace. When we talk about consumers, and share our insights, you can see the empathy in their eyes because we are with people who have confronted the exact same challenges, just in a different geographical market - Scandinavia.

How do you overcome people's concern that all Mexican food is spicy? Or the fallacious scepticism that there is a rich cuisine in Mexico? That not all Mexicans wear sombreros and live on crispy tacos? How do we overcome the absence of a meaningful Mexican population and generally poor Mexican restaurants

The two businesses have followed very different routes in establishing brand credibility and interest; differences that are routed sometimes in ideology and other times through necessity or even capability. The sharing of these alternative routes is fascinating and productive - and ultimately the sum of the parts will massively strengthen the business as a whole.

I am equally as intrigued with the leadership and vision casting. It has been inspiring to see the appetite and enthusiasm in the Swedish business. I have been highly impressed with the focus and resolve to grow and develop. Despite their being much larger than Discovery, I am increasingly impressed by an undiluted entrepreneurial spirit - painfully reminding me that in our growth and quest for structure and professionalism, we have at times stifled that spirit. I realise that we need to readdress this... by once again nurturing that characteristic within the business.

Good leaders are able to discern and share a vision about the future that quickens the pulse. There is something intangible, but palpable and highly motivating, about an optimistic view of the future - and it is exciting to have a fresh injection of that vision and determination. It is not just me who feels it. Despite the certainty of change, and the uncertainty of what it might bring, we are becoming ever more aware that the business is now running on higher octane fuel - and it is very exciting.