Success Stories

Be inspired by other female entrepreneurs who have turned their ideas into successful businesses.

Shipa Khan

Shipa Khan is Vice-Chair of the Portsmouth (PBBA) Portsmouth Bangladesh Business Association and Community Development Officer at the Portsmouth City Council.

Sass Adams

Rev. Sass Adams (they/them) is a freelance social media advisor, an ordained Interfaith Minister, and the founder of Spiritunity.

Salina is a chartered accountant and lecturer currently working for the University of Portsmouth. She is also a member of PBBA (Portsmouth Bangladeshi Business Association), and sister of Entrepreneur in Resident, Faz Ahmed, owner of well-known The Akash restaurant in Southsea.

Roni Edwards

A dance practitioner by trade, Roni Edwards is also the founder and director of Pamodzi Creatives, a community interest company (CIC).

Jodie Hughes

Through AWE, Jodie learnt how to value herself as a businesswoman. She took what felt like an almost impossible task and broke it down into small chunks of achievable targets.

Cécile Ivanes

Through her creativity and engineering skills, Cécile has created a successful business that reflects her unique values and talents.

Amy Doyle

Amy wanted to help other female founders with additional barriers thrive in the business world so set up The Lark Network.

Selina Keedwell

Selina, Artistic Director of the Somerset Youth Theatre Community Interest Company, explains how they work in rural locations across Somerset, working with young people to provide a safe place for them to explore, create and find their voice through theatre.

Lisa Lea-Weston

Lisa talks about how the enterprise, Talking Heads Supervision Ltd, brings external, professional supervision to head teachers and senior leadership teams around the UK.

Carmen Wong

Carmen describes how Community Interest Company, JarSquad puts joy and connection in jars by bringing surplus fruit and veg and people together to create something “magic”

Imen Ayari

Imen Ayari is a business coach and a marketing expert, as well as a mentor for AWE. Originally from Tunisia, Imen decided to enter the beauty industry back in 1997.

Siobainn Chaplin

Siobainn is using her long career in working with young people in her new service designed to help children and their parents or carers to start to communicate again and understand each other’s perspective during difficult times.

Emily Cockle – Emily Consultancy Ltd

Emily Cockle utilised the skills developed throughout her career in major regeneration and development projects to establish her own consultancy.

Vanessa Miles

Vanessa Miles has worked as a photographer for decades with her photographs gracing the pages and websites of celebrated publications. Now working as a freelance photographer and running a social enterprise, she received help from AWE which taught her some important lessons.

Ruth Chadwick

The idea of establishing a fleece felting enterprise had been percolating in Ruth’s mind for several years, so when she was made redundant from her role as a Kindergarten Teacher at age 63, Ruth felt it was the right time to implement her idea and invested in a felt-making machine.

Sarah Nuttall-Worsley – Invigorate Nutrition Club

When the COVID-19 pandemic meant that she was put on furlough from her part-time job fundraising for a local charity, Sarah Nuttall-Worsley looked to her personal interest in health, fitness and nutrition as the inspiration for a new business.

Haidee Dampney – Yoga with Haidee & The Tree Project CIC

A background working with vulnerable families helped Haidee Dampney to set up a business helping people to improve their wellbeing. “The AWE team helped me with my confidence in making decision, before which I was questioning whether to continue with the businesses,” said Haidee.

Elisa Riutta – South Coast Mindfulness

AWE helped me to feel in control and it was uplifting to share my experience with other female entrepreneurs and know that they faced many of the same challenges.

Sophie Dialkova – Palm Tree Yoga

“The positivity and enthusiasm towards my business that I have received from Outset and AWE has boosted my confidence,”

Ruth James

“I met someone who directed me to the AWE Making a Difference programme. It was the perfect timing and it has really helped me navigate all the practical steps I need to take in order to expand my idea.”

Maryam Chaanda and Mariam Mohammed

“Being able to participate on the AWE Making a Difference programme was a life-changing experience.” Find out more about Maryam and Mariam’s business start-up journey.

Emma-Jayne Murphy

“AWE has been amazing because it has helped me to do things differently. Being able to join the weekly AWE group with other women, has been very supportive and inspiring.” Find out more about Emma’s experience setting up a charity.

Kimberley Chandler – Cinnamon Yoga

Kimberley Chandler – Cinnamon Yoga An ambition to spread her love of yoga and sharing its benefits with others was the inspiration for Cinnamon Yoga, set up by Kimberley Chandler in 2019. After resigning from her office job for a media production company in Brighton, she worked at Soul & Surf in India. It was…

Sharon Lobb

Sharon Lobb felt the need for a change and a new challenge, which coincided with her daughter’s desire to start a new retail business. Therefore mother and daughter decided to go into business together. They wanted to build a retail business which sold quirky and unique things, as well as traditional and quality items for children.

Jo Onda

Jo realised that she might be able to turn her exceptional baking skills, having made cakes for her family, into a business. However she felt she did not possess the skills she needed to start her business, and she also lacked the confidence to do so.

Ruth Daddow

Ruth Daddow, the founder of She Decorates is a painting and decorating business based in Redruth, Cornwall, focusing on residential properties and small businesses. Ruth has always enjoyed decorating, so when her teaching contract came to an end, her family and friends encouraged her do something different and to start a decorating business and she has not looked back since!

Case Studies