Business Time: Fringe Dog meets Brian Butterfield

Time to start calling Fringe Dog 'Dog-can Boneantyne' in this very serious business interview with Brian Butterfield (aka Peter Serafinowicz)

Feature by Fringe Dog | 17 Jun 2024
  • Brian Butterfield

o boy what an honour to interview the brilliant mr brian butterfield - i thought ‘now here’s a man i can do my business with’ !!! what a scoop !!

fringe dog: i failed all my dog training and became a comedy reviewer. how did you get started in business ?!? 

Brian Butterfield: It was a very similar story for me too. I failed business studies, failed business school, failed business university and then failed in business. Many multiple times. But from failure comes success. Is what a wise old man told me once. I’m hoping that at some point the wise old man’s words come true. 

i once knew a dog who opened a stick shop but his customers kept bringing them back !!! do you have any tips in overcoming sticky setbacks ??? 

A stick shop is a great idea! Do you know if that dog is looking for investors? Great ideas don’t grow on trees but sticks do. My advice for overcoming adversity in the business world is to not let it get you down. I remember closing a business, filing for bankruptcy, turning away bailiffs and checking my bank account to see that I’d just gone over my overdraft limit and thinking everything was against me. That was just this morning. But I looked myself in the mirror and said “Something will come good. Believe in yourself” I then realised it wasn’t a mirror but a poster for the film Hellraiser. It really took me by surprise. 

i was taught to “take the lead” by a business mentor. i did take the lead, but o boy my owner isn’t happy being tied up outside tescos . must a great leader always put business before friendship to get ahead ?!? 

My four rules of business are as follows: 1) I have forgotten the first one, 2) Never say no to an idea, even if it’s a bad one (hence allowing myself to be interviewed by a dog), 3) Failure is not an option (it’s a necessity) and 4) Never be friends with your business partners. Business and friendship go together like fish and chips – a terrible combination that will never work. When you’re a titan of industry, you have to be prepared to fire anyone you work with at a moment’s notice, friendship be damned. I learned this by being fired by the last fifteen businessmen I worked for, before going into business for myself (during which time I was fired a further 15 times). 

is it possible to maintain focus and productivity while taking eight naps a day (askin' for a frend) ??? 

Who is this friend you’re asking on the behalf of? I’m worried on their behalf because medically it’s very important to have no more than seven naps in a working day. Eight naps can prove fatal, never mind affecting focus and productivity. During my working day that begins at 8am I will take a nap at 8:04am for three minutes in order to improve brain control, then another nap at 9:16am for 55 seconds, which increases bone oxygen. Then, at 10:38am and again at 11:38am, I will take one-minute long naps in order to recentre my blood. Just before my lunch I will have an hour-long nap from midday to 1pm, in order to ready my body for lunch. And then it’s a solid run through until 11pm, at which time I will take a three second nap before beginning the night shift. Tell your friend to do this.

there are many motivational books for the business leader – 'howl to win friends and influence puppies'; 'the art of paw'; 'think and growl rich' !!! what are your favourite business books and have you ever thought of writing one yourself ?!? 

My favourite business books are The Art Of No Deal by Noel Edmonds, When Needs Musk by Elon Musk and Capitalism vs Keynesianism in the Modern Age by Dapper Laughs. I have thought about writing my own book for some time. I thought about it so much that I ended up actually writing it. It’s called There’s No Business Like BUSINESS! I managed to secure a publisher (me) and also a printer (also me) who have been very helpful in getting it made. It’s jam packed full of tips, tricks, quotes, business advice and a few pages left accidentally blank. It’s available exclusively at all good merchandise tables at the venues my Call of Now seminar is taking place at.


Brian Butterfield's Call of Now, Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, 23 JunPavilion Theatre, Glasgow, 25 Jun

Follow Brian at @mrbbutterfield on Twitter and Instagram