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23 Female Entrepreneurs Under 30 Who Are Bossing Life

The #girlbosses you need to know

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Female entrepreneurs | ELLE UKpinterest

From pulling pints in a pub to self-fund their business ventures to funding business education for women in rural India from selling sportswear, these twentysomething women reveal the inspiration behind their businesses and how they made a success out of their dreams.

Rachel McCoubrie (24) and Elizabeth Robinson (30); Co-founders and owners of LRM Goods

LRM | ELLE UK

Rachel: Libby and I met at work and discovered that we shared a common entrepreneurial spirit and loved anything personalised.


Last November, Libby wanted to buy me a Navy Blue personalised passport holder with my initials for my birthday but could only find premium brands that stocked holders worth over £70. 


As a result, we identified a gap in the market for beautiful leather goods, personalised with your chosen initials, at an affordable price. 


The most important thing we learned from starting our business is that if you believe in yourself and put your mind to something, things can and will happen. 


Find your passion and let nothing stop you. There will be times when you will feel completely out of your comfort zone, but embrace this and absorb all the new skills and experiences you can. Don't ever be intimated by obstacles or challenges - you will look back and realise they were put in place for a reason. 

Visit LRM Goods here

Bianca Miller-Cole; 27; CEO of Personal branding company 'The Be Group' and diverse hosiery brand 'Bianca Miller London'

Dome, Dress, Dome, Finial, Byzantine architecture, Waist, Day dress, Cocktail dress, One-piece garment, Basilica,

'I started my first business 'The Be Group' aged 23-years-old after working in the city and seeing that there were a number of people at various stages of the career lifecycle who needed assistance with understanding the value of their 'personal brand'. 


When I started the business, I was young and fairly naive but over the last four and a half years I have grown the business from nothing to having an amazing list of blue chip clients (Accenture, EY, Barclays, HSBC, Mercer, Alliance, Olswang LLP etc), universities and schools. 


In 2014, after having my own personal frustrations with not being able to find the right 'nude' tights to match my skin tone, I took my business plan to redefine nude hosiery by offering a variety of colours to suit all skin tones onto the BBC show, The Apprentice


My hosiery brand 'Bianca Miller London' launched online in November 2015 providing eight shades of nude to compliment all women - from English rose to darker African skin tones. In August 2016 we launched internationally with Topshop. 


I have learnt a lot in business about what it takes to succeed - the importance of having a vision, accepting feedback, the ability to negotiate, how to turn no into yes, being determined and so on. 


My advice to women is 'feel the fear and do it anyway', women tend to be more risk adverse than men but statistically are better in business, so if you have a great idea get the support you need and get started.

Visit Bianca Miller London here.

Rebecca (27) Andrea (24) and Danielle Winckworth (21) Co-founders of White & Green, Ireland's first 100% Certified Organic cotton bedding company

Winckworth sisters | ELLE UK
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Rebecca: I was living in India a few years ago and spent time with garment factory workers. Through them, I learnt about the human rights abuses that are prevalent in the industry (sweatshops, child labour etc).


I came home quite horrified by the experience and decided to start an ethical retail brand to create an alternative to this exploitative system. Similarly, my mother is an interior designer and she spent years trying to source really high quality bed sheets at an affordable price, but found it was almost impossible. 


My sister Danielle was a fashion model and always wanted to go into product creation and design. So, we pooled all of our talents and skills to create an ethical bed sheets brand of high quality, classic designs at a fair price.


We spent a year and a half preparing for the launch of White & Green and in the end we almost had to be forced to launch it – we were so scared of not getting everything absolutely perfect. There will be mistakes and you might even have to change fundamental parts of the business model, but it's impossible to know this until you catapult your idea from pen and paper to the real world.

Visit White & Green here.

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Jusnah Gadi; 26; Music Entrepreneur of Young Music Boss, a resource hub and network building tool for young music entrepreneurs and creatives.

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I've always been a person wanting to operate outside of the box and driven by the desire to make a difference. When I finished Law School, I started to explore how I could merge my academic training with my passion, which is music and turn it into a business, through that process of exploration young music boss was born. 


Many of the people surrounding me are creatives or entrepreneurs in the music industry and often come to me for guidance on the legal aspects of the business, which encouraged me to establish the consultancy element of YMB. 


Through the company, I also wanted to create more diverse visibility for the young people who are shaping the music business, but are often overlooked because they don't operate in traditional roles within the industry, which is why I established the YMB Awards (taking place April next year) and our quarterly Meritocracy dinner series which we do in partnership with UK Music and the MMF.  


I think the greatest lesson I have learned through running YMB is mistakes are valuable, failure is great because these are the things that shape you, they create the moments that force you to do better. 


If I had to give advice to anyone wanting to start their own business I would say 'just jump', you can spend the rest of your life assessing risk, thinking the time is not right but the reality is you need courage and the audacity to believe in your capacity to be great.

The Young Music Boss website is coming soon.

Pippa Murray; 28; Founder of Pip & Nut, the all-natural nut butter brand

Hair, Face, Nose, Mouth, Eye, Eyebrow, Eyelash, Tooth, Jewellery, Brown hair,

Having my own food brand has, hands down, been the most rewarding thing I've ever done. Granted, there have been moments which have challenged me but the fact that on a day to day basis I can say I've learnt something new is one of the things I love most about my job. 

I love marathon running, and whilst training I often turned to natural sources of protein to fuel on. I often found myself eating peanut butter straight from the jar, but a lot of them were supermarket brands laden with either palm oil and sugar and then the healthy ones were just a little too healthy looking. Having created the business concept, I entered Pip & Nut into a competition - 'Escape to the Shed' run by Escape the City and won. For the next three months I lived, worked and launched the business from a shed in Central London. 

Having never run my own business or worked in food and drink, I've had to learn everything from the ground up and I've done this by surrounding myself with the best mentors, investors, team, suppliers and agencies who share their knowledge and expertise to develop my own and grow the brand.

If you're looking at starting up a business, never be afraid to ask that stupid question or reach out to someone in the industry you admire, as the more support you can get the more your brand – and you – will flourish.

Visit Pip & Nut here.

Angelica Malin; 25; Editor-in-Chief of About Time Magazine, offering readers information about food, drink and lifestyle in and around London

Angelica Malin | ELLE UK
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The website is inspired by a quote from Zadie Smith in On Beauty: 'Time is how you spend your love.' I came about the idea for About Time after feeling increasingly frustrated by going on lifestyle websites and being overwhelmed by the sheer amount of choice and variety on offer for restaurants, events, fitness classes - massive long lists of 100 things. 

I wanted someone to sit me down and say: 'This. This one thing is worth your time.' And that's what About Time is - bossy, authoritative, your friend in the know, who knows that your time is precious, and wants to spend it well. 

Sometimes you do things without knowing, exactly, why you're doing them at that time. Listen to that gut instinct, the drive to pursue a project, because that's what takes an idea to a reality. You have to be fluid with that idea; it changes, morphs, takes on a life of its own. 

Visit About Time here

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Morgan Dowler; 24; Director of Love Me…(And My Secret), a lingerie brand creating post operation and mastectomy bras for women

Laptop part, Electronic device, Laptop, Mannequin, Technology, Wrist, Computer, Input device, Personal computer, Office equipment,

Starting your own business is always a difficult process and biting the bullet and taking your idea forward is the first huge hurdle. You will hit many road blocks that need to be assessed and overcome, but passion will always increase your determination. Doing what you love makes it an enjoyable journey. 

Starting Love Me…(And My Secret) and providing lingerie for women post breast cancer surgery is something close to my heart after my mum was diagnosed in 2013. It inspired me to provide women with comfortable, supportive and pretty bras that in turn will increase their confidence and restore their varied and personal perceptions of 'femininity'. One thing I have learned from my process would be that there are many people out there that want to help that were once in the same boat as you. 

Visit Love Me...(And My Secret) here

Ifeyinwa Frederick; 24; Co-founder of Chuku's, the world's first Nigerian tapas lounge

Hair, Lip, Cheek, Fun, Hairstyle, Skin, Chin, Forehead, Eyebrow, Photograph,

My first business was a dance school that I set up when I was 16-years-old to earn some extra cash so I didn't have to spend my weekends working a part-time job. My main focus then was money.

My motivation for starting Chuku's was something entirely different and I wholeheartedly believe now that in business you need to be driven by a purpose beyond profit.

For me, it was my love of Nigerian food. I am passionate about the food of my heritage and whilst British consumers love exploring new cuisines and culture,s many haven't had the chance to try Nigerian cuisine. I wanted to provide them with that opportunity for discovery.

So, despite never having worked in a restaurant before, I launched our first pop-up with my brother  which proved to be a sell-out success. In the year since launching Chuku's, our successes has continued, including feeding Olympic champion Christine Ohuruogu.

As an entrepreneur in a sector that I previously knew nothing about, my advice is don't let your knowledge gaps stop you. You don't need all the answers to begin. Make a start in some way, and then become a sponge. As you approach something you're inexperienced in, soak up guidance from all sources: read books, attend workshops, Google! And don't be afraid to reach out to successful people in your industry for advice – you'll be surprised at how many people will respond to a cold email.

Visit Chuku here.

Margot Radicati di Brozolo; 28; Founder, YourMind, an online network offering practical tools to help users overcome fears, worries or sadness

Clothing, Hair, Lip, Hairstyle, Sleeve, Eyebrow, Textile, Long hair, Fashion, Beauty,

The idea for YourMind started a few years ago when, after telling my friends and family that I was suffering from symptoms of anxiety, I realised that many around me were facing similar struggles.

I imagined YourMind as the go-to place for easy-to-understand, friendly and effective advice for looking after mental wellbeing and video-therapy sessions with high quality psychologists and psychotherapists.

At the time, I was working in management consulting and the idea of leaving a well-paid job to throw myself into uncertainty was unthinkable. So, I continued in my corporate job while dreaming of YourMind.

After two years of daydreaming, in January 2016 I decided to attend the entrepreneurial event 'Startup Tribe at Escape The City' to find out more about launching a business. Four months later, I started to set up YourMind alongside my job and eventually left to dedicate myself to it full time.

My advice to women considering setting up a business: you don't need a huge amount of funding. You can – and should – start with a minimum viable product (MVP) and invest as little as possible to test your concept. If it works, then you can invest more. Equally, there are plenty of freelancing opportunities out there – you could be earning on a flexible schedule while setting up your dream company. 

Visit YourMind here.

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Phoebe Gormely; 22; Founder and Tailor-in-Chief of Gormley & Gamble, the first women's only tailors in Savile Row's history

Clothing, Sleeve, Collar, Coat, Textile, Outerwear, Standing, Style, Formal wear, Mannequin,

In 2014 I quit university to start my own company, Gormley & Gamble. I had one lecture a week and was completely un-stimulated – I wanted more. Having interned around Savile Row since the tender age of 15, I knew where I wanted to go. Two years on and we're the first women's only tailors in the history of the street. The future of G&G includes a semi-bespoke line launching a highly-curated edit of wardrobe essentials.

My advice to other women looking to start out is that this life, of 7-day weeks, 14-hour days, it's not for everyone and it's never going to be easy. It's not for the faint-hearted, and you absolutely have to back yourself, and believe in yourself, or you can't expect anyone else to do so. But the rewards are great; there's nothing like the feeling of serving a happy customer, or walking into a morning meeting with your team around you and ready to work. 

I believe that everyone has it in them; it's just finding the right thing to put your heart and mind to.

Visit Gormley and Gamble here

Roshni Assomull (27) and Shaleena Chanrai (26); Co-founders of Bella Kinesis, a sportswear brand funding business education for women in rural India

Arm, Blue, Smile, Sleeve, Shoulder, Joint, Happy, Waist, Facial expression, Electric blue,

Roshni: As girls who were never sporty at school and quite frankly hated exercise, Shaleena and I are unlikely sportswear entrepreneurs. We started Bella Kinesis because we felt that the existing sportswear on the market was made by fit people, for fit people. 


We only took up exercise again in our twenties, after suffering from various weight issues, we felt intimidated by the activewear available on the market. We decided we wanted to create a friendlier, more approachable fitness brand with which women could identify more easily. So with no experience in fashion, manufacturing or retail, we created Bella Kinesis. 


Since women are at the forefront of our brand, we wanted to create a way to empower them within our business model. Exercise not only makes women physically stronger, but also leaves them feeling more confident and empowered. We decided to give this same feeling to other women by helping them start their own businesses. We devised the one for one or 'strength for strength' system so that our customers have the opportunity to strengthen another woman's life with every purchase. For each item of sportswear we sell, we fund one month's business education for a woman in rural India.


Whatever your idea is, strip it down to the basics and start from there. We really believe that everything is achievable if you take it in small steps.

Visit Bella Kinesis here

Lucy Coleman; 30; Founder of Postcards Home, online homeware and gifts shop

Sleeve, Brick, Style, Pattern, Street fashion, Brickwork, Tights, Blond, Active pants, Scarf,

I've wanted to have my own business for as long as I can remember and I've treated my career as a bit of a scavenger hunt; always on the look out for new skills I could learn and inspirational people I could collect along the way.


It took a six month business trip to South India to finally motivate me to take the plunge. I was living in Kerala, and was surrounded by completely fearless entrepreneurs, a lot of them women who couldn't understand why if, I wanted to have my own business, I hadn't done it already. 


So, I quit my job in advertising and set up meetings with my favourite contemporary Indian designers with a plan to create an online homeware and gifts boutique to showcase their work in the UK. 


The designers I work with are mostly women and, where possible, I try and work with social enterprises that employ and empower marginalised women around the world. I've learned that in the early years when you're ploughing all your time into your business – you have to love what you sell and really believe in the people you work with. 

Visit Postcards Home here

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Sophie Ashby; 28; Founder & Creative Director of Studio Ashby, an interior design company based in West London

Mouth, Shoulder, Shelf, Denim, Jeans, Shelving, Joint, Sitting, Flowerpot, Knee,

I've always known that I needed to do something creative and I've always been interested in business and property. For me, interior design was the perfect combination of all those passions. 

I started my company in my mid-twenties after studying in London and New York. At 25, you still have so much to learn but I don't think that ever really changes; there were some aspects that were daunting but I had great support and encouragement and ultimately felt I needed to be the master of my own fate, time and success.

For me, a handful of really strong connections got me to where I am now and in my experience, the strength of those connection is built on real friendships, honesty and mutual respect. It's important to find a great accountant who is kind and patient, who makes you feel like you're their only client, who doesn't look at you like you're an imbecile if you ask a basic question and who doesn't charge the earth. They will be invaluable in planning the growth of your business and putting the right foundations in place. 

My advice to anyone starting in the design world would be to just keep reading, researching and looking for things that inspire you and enjoy the search for new and different suppliers and craftsmen. Put the emphasis on quality and longevity over fads and trends. 

Visit Studio Ashby here.

Rosie Davies; 29; Agency Director at PR group, The London Fashion Agency

Clothing, Plaid, Tartan, Hairstyle, Sleeve, Collar, Shoulder, Textile, Pattern, Style,

I was 21 when I started interning with independent brands. They all told me the same thing; public relations (PR) with an agency was unattainable, but they didn't know how to go about doing their own. I had never worked in the industry – I didn't really know what PR was, but I could see it was key for these independent brands to get the publicity they deserved.


In 2013, I started the UK's first affordable fashion PR agency, The London Fashion Agency. I decided not to get a loan or investment so worked a number of jobs to self-fund LFA (I can pull a cracking pint of Guinness!).


I listened to what my target market was saying and fixed problems they were facing with traditional PR models. The most important lesson I learned along the way was to just be me – honest, approachable, and passionate about what I believe in.  As the business grows these attributes are reflected in our wonderful team.


When people say to me: 'You're doing so well', I always feel embarrassed. Every business faces challenges and I am no exception. It's important to stay on your toes and always stay proactive in an ever-changing industry. Someone once said to me 'the moment you think you've made it, is the moment you'll fail'. That statement will stay with me forever. 

Visit The London Fashion Agency here

Lina Gadi; 27; Co-founder and Marketing Director of Shear & Shine grooming range for black men

Blue, Lip, Eyebrow, Wrap, Headgear, Electric blue, Eyelash, Stole, Cobalt blue, Shawl,

We launched the Shear & Shine Grooming range in January this year following the success of the Shear & Shine Barbershop, launched in March 2014. 


My business partner, Aaron Wallace and I launched Shear & Shine grooming, after we felt there was a gap in the market for products that addressed the grooming issues of black men. Because we were also running a barbershop, we were in direct contact with our customers everyday and knew therefore that there was a demand. The fact that our launch story went so viral only served to confirm our own research and understanding of the market. 


I strongly believe that we underestimate just how much fear of failure can prevent us from taking the risks necessary to achieve extraordinary things. Running my own business is one of the hardest challenges I have taken on and there are moments when self-doubt can seriously make you second guess decisions. It is this that I have had to learn to overcome. 


It's not easy to learn to silence or challenge that little voice in our heads, but I think it's essential to learn how to do so if you want to run a successful business. Some decisions won't be the best ones and mistakes will happen but it's learning how to handle them that determines whether or not you will succeed. Think in solutions. 


My one piece of advice to anyone wanting to start a business of their own is start making networking a habit. Online and offline. Start making sure you place yourself in the right rooms with the right people because it does make a difference. 

Visit Shear & Shine here.

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Joanne Thompson (27) and Rachel Swidenbank (29); Co-founders at Cookoo, a food delivery service offeringhome-cooked meals from the best local cooks

Table, Furniture, Interior design, Sharing, Interior design, Cuisine, Plate, Coffee table, Living room, Dish,

Joanne: Cookoo began in Rachel's kitchen in South East London. We decided that anyone, anywhere should be able to turn their own kitchen and love of cooking into a successful food business. To prove it, we started cooking ourselves and selling to the busy office workers we used to be. Since then, we have enabled 30 more cooks to do this, turning their passion for cooking into a profitable business from their own home, and we have 45 more cooks waiting to join.


Our most important piece of advice for women starting a business is to be clear and passionate about the problem that you are solving. 


For us, we had both worked long hours in the city eating take-away food at our desks almost every evening, so finding a simple solution to eating delicious, healthy, home-cooked meals is something we have always been incredibly passionate about. 


After speaking to people who love to cook, from professional chefs to family and friends, we discovered that a problem also existed there, around the perceived cost of setting up a food business, so we knew we could build a business and a brand to solve booth problems. As the business has grown we've focused on testing hypothesis and theories regularly and effectively to ensure that we are always moving forward in the right direction.

Visit Cuckoo here

Hayley Smith; 28; Founder of FlowAid and Owner of Boxed Out PR, a campaign that provides free sanitary products to homeless women

Clothing, Eye, Bangs, Brown hair, Portrait photography, Makeover, Hime cut, Sweater, Portrait, Bob cut,

I launched  FlowAid in December 2015 to help build infrastructures within existing organisations and creates centralised drop off points, currently throughout London.


Since December, FlowAid has partnered with several local shelters, and major UK homeless charity St. Mungo's. This has allowed the donations to be distributed directly to the women who need them.


Initially, I contacted homeless charities and brands, with little response. I soon learned that instead of cutting the red tape, it would be more effective to encourage existing organisations to drive donations, and for FlowAid to raise awareness of the issue. This has been very effective. As much I would like to eradicate homelessness, FlowAid is about making these women's lives easier.


My advice to people setting up their own business, is play to your strengths. Choose something that you have experience in and contacts, and spend a good quality of time building your network. They will be your net worth. 


Also, it is ok to fail, and with FlowAid, it has taken me almost a year to realise exactly how I want to solve this problem. And this realisation has been achieved through a lot of trial and error.

Visit FlowAid here and Boxed Out PR here. Watch Hayley's TEDxCoventGardenWomen's talk 'The Monthly Gift' here

Jasmine Eilfield; 23; Co-Founder ExpoCart, an events tech start-up

Clothing, Lip, Hairstyle, Sleeve, Collar, Eyebrow, Happy, Facial expression, Iris, Street fashion,

ExpoCart is a tech start-up in the events space and we're on a one-way mission to reinvent the way people discover and hire equipment for their exhibitions. Our curated marketplace with thousands of products from furniture and props to audio visual equipment allows people to order everything they need from a network of event suppliers.


It all started when me and my co-founder were actually working as event suppliers, delivering unique digital displays to exhibition stands across the country. We would be the ones driving the vans, setting up the display, doing the marketing, sales and customer service. We soon realised that our customers wanted more variety of equipment to hire – they wanted to be able to order it from one convenient platform  and this was when ExpoCart was born.


Over the years, I've learned you have to be resilient – you will get knock backs, but it's the passion for what you're building and the team around you that keeps you going and helps you to jump over those hurdles.


I'd advise budding entrepreneurs to be shameless, reach out to people who have been successful and have done it before. Ask lots of questions and learn from the best. 

Visit ExpoCart here.

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Katie O'Malley
Site Director

Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more. 

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