Making hidden talents a business reality

Women across Wales are being encouraged to become budding entrepreneurs by turning their skills and hidden talents into money making businesses.

‘Is there an idea in me?’ is the latest webinar to be run by Chwarae Teg for would be businesswomen, featuring advice from role models and providing the guidance and tools for turning a talent into a viable business.

The sessions will run three times, being separately tailored to south, west and north Wales audiences, so that women living in the different areas hear from entrepreneurs and about support local to them.

The webinars form part of Chwarae Teg’s partnership with Simply Do Ideas, funded by NatWest, and supported by Big Ideas Wales, as they work together to increase the number of women entrepreneurs across the nation.

Simply Do Ideas is providing their online platform as the ‘All Women Entrepreneurial Network’ (or ‘AWEN’) which women can join, following the webinar. It provides opportunities to connect and collaborate with other women setting out on their entrepreneurial journeys, and offers the support needed to make their business dreams a reality.

Details of the up and coming ‘Is there and Idea in me?’ webinars, and registration links, are as follows:

• South Wales (Cardiff) – 10:30am – 12:30pm, Wednesday 17 November – www.chwaraeteg.com/events/is-there-an-idea-in-me-cardiff
• West Wales (Aberystwyth) – 10:30am – 12:30pm, Wednesday 24 November – www.chwaraeteg.com/events/is-there-an-idea-in-me-aberystwyth
• North Wales (Wrexham) – 10:30am – 12:30pm, Wednesday 1st December – www.chwaraeteg.com/events/is-there-an-idea-in-me-wrexham

Entrepreneurs involved include Caitlin Gwynn of The Hand Made VA, Paula Burns – wedding planner, Helen Corsi-Cadmore – consultant and coach, Shumana Palit of Ultracomida, Lottie Summer of Wild Coast Events, Tania Kenny of Welsh Sisters Dry Gin, illustrator Natalie Griffiths, and Lowri Rhys Roberts – founder of Casgliad Collection.

Caitlin Gwynne of The Hand Made VA, said: “I am thrilled to be involved in this incredibly exciting event! Starting and running my own business during the pandemic has been a huge adventure for me, and one that I would encourage anyone to take. That being said, I know first-hand how difficult it is to just get started and how tricky it can be to deal with those feelings of overwhelm and fear. I’m excited to share my experiences, learn from the other wonderful speakers, and hopefully encourage you to get going! This event is going to be an incredible first stepping stone to anyone who’s ever felt like they want to start a business but have no idea where to start.”

Emma Tamplin, Collaboration Manager, Chwarae Teg, said: “We know that a lot of women have an abundance of hidden talents but often undervalue their skills. These webinars will help women develop confidence, figure out ideas, find out what it’s really like to run a business and ensure they have the practical knowledge to turn a seed of an idea into a plan.”

Lee Sharma, Chief Executive, Simply Do Ideas, said: “We’re delighted to be teaming up again to MAKE IT HAPPEN for women thinking about starting their own business. By the end of the webinar they will have a set of tools to start building on their idea through our digital platform. This is a safe, digital space where ideas can spark and innovation can flourish.”

Gemma Casey, Ecosystem Manager for Wales, NatWest, said: “We know that one of the biggest obstacles putting 60% of women off starting a business is imposter syndrome and that internal belief they can’t achieve success. The fact is these women can and as a purpose led bank that is the biggest supporter of start-ups in the UK, we want to change that mindset.

“We have set a target to help create an additional 50,000 new businesses by 2023 and crucially, 60% of these businesses will be female led with the majority outside of London and the South East. Our support and funding of a project like Is There An Idea In Me are important to helping us reach this goal and creating a new generation of successful female entrepreneurs.”

Funded by NatWest, the sessions form part of the successful MAKE IT HAPPEN series of webinars which Chwarae Teg and Simply do Ideas began in 2020. They were developed following a report produced by Alison Rose, Chief Executive, NatWest Group plc and the UK Government into the value of female entrepreneurship. It found that there was much work to be done to tackle the gender gap in business start-ups, which if filled could add up to £250billion to the UK economy. Among other striking imbalances, the report also highlighted the fact that only 1 in 3 UK entrepreneurs are female: a gender gap equivalent to 1.1million missing businesses.