A huge thank you to our exceptional panel of entrepreneur alumnae, Louisa Preskett-Mobbs (NHEHS 1998), Co- Founder of Maison Margaux and Polar Black Events, Sarah Brown (NHEHS 1994), Founder of Pai Skincare, Ella Merriman (NHEHS 2013), Co-Founder of Merri Intimates and Vanita Parti (NHEHS 1987), Founder of Blink Brow Bar, for such an insightful and hugely informative evening at our Women in Entrepreneurship networking event recently.

The discussion began with the panel explaining why they chose to set up their own businesses including wanting the flexibility to be able to raise a family alongside a fulfilling work life as well as the dislike of working for other people and sharing design and creativity ideas, as an employee, while knowing that some ideas are really good and worth more. Sarah made the interesting point that she didn’t choose to set up a skincare brand but rather it chose her. Following a sudden idiopathic skin condition that she developed in her mid-20s, she struggled to find products on the market that she could use so she created her own range of natural products… from her garage in Ealing!

As well as huge successes, the panel have also faced challenges such as failure and rejection but they explained how important it is to be resilient: to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and move onto the next opportunity. They also discussed how important it is to have self-belief, both in your idea and your ability to deliver it, especially when it comes to overcoming other people’s doubt. They agreed that the execution of your idea is where the real skill is involved.

The panel shared some great tips with the audience about starting a business. These included doing something that you’re really passionate about, having a great core product or service and spending the time refining that product or service to make it as perfect as you can and having an idea that you can explain to anyone in two sentences- what you’re doing and why it’s so good. Your idea also needs to have that unique selling proposition and it needs to be different. It doesn’t have to be new but it has to be that you’re doing it in a different way – there has to be a gap in the market for it. You also need to get out there, even if you don’t feel like it, and to show up to as many networking events as you can. Avoid working by yourself in your bedroom and find a shared working environment to work from, even if it’s a coffee shop. A routine is important – getting up in the morning and getting out of your pyjamas! Finally, getting lots of work experience is vital… as is working hard!

The audience, comprising NHEHS alumnae, NHEHS students in Years 10-13, as well as their parents, asked the panel some great questions at the end of the evening relating to when and how to trust your gut instinct, the next big challenges for their businesses and whether the reality of owning their own businesses has matched the expectation they had before they started. We all came away truly inspired!