From Pitch to Startup: Lessons Rugby Taught Me About Business
I never grew up dreaming of owning a business. I dreamt of playing professional sport. For 17 years, the pitch was my workplace. Every week demanded preparation, resilience, and precision.
When I retired in 2024, I thought I was leaving that world behind. Instead, I found its lessons stitched into every part of running Van Velze & Smith. I quickly realised that business doesn’t move week by week like sport - it plays out over longer arcs. That shift has made the lessons from rugby even more valuable.
Here are three that matter most:
1. Consistency beats intensity.
In rugby, one brilliant game won’t define your career. It’s the daily habits that set your standard. Running a startup is no different. One rushed decision can compromise the launch of an entire range. The goal isn’t to push harder, but to show up steady, make clean calls, and stay consistent. Young businesses can pivot quickly, but only if the basics are sound.
2. Teamwork is the craft.
Even as a captain, I never won a match on my own. Every role mattered, from the front row to the fullback. It’s the same in a business. One person might shape the design, another the marketing strategy, another the logistics, another manages diaries and deadlines. Respect for each step, and the people behind it, is what creates momentum.
3. Pressure reveals standards.
Big games test more than skill, they test nerve. Startups are the same. Supply delays, launch dates, shifting priorities; shortcuts are always tempting. But standards mean holding the line, even when it costs time. And in a small business, time is the hardest thing to give up. In rugby and in business, you’re only as strong as the standards you keep under pressure.
I thought rugby and running a business were worlds apart. In reality, rugby was my learning curve, my university. When I look at a finished pair of boots and smell the leather, I don’t just see materials and stitches. I see the same lessons that carried me through countless seasons.
And I’m reminded that building a business, like rugby, is never just about the outcome. It’s about how you play the game.
-GJ
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