Guest Blog; 6 Awesome Female-Led Businesses We’d Love To Work For 

Starting your own business as a female entrepreneur has never been easier: there are SO many money-making avenues to explore on your own terms. 

And why not lean on the wealth of advice from the millions of women who have already built massive business empires of their own?

With this spirit in mind, here are six female entrepreneurs that have built spectacularly successful enterprises from the ground-up. 

Let’s take a look at some of these company’s best qualities and the lessons we can take from these talented female leaders. 

Read our blog on the #1 trait female leaders need to cultivate.

Not On The High Street.Com — Retail with a heart

Holly and Sophie founded NotOnTheHighStreet.Com over ten years ago, and the unique business model has flourished since then. A popular place to find quirky and heartfelt gifts, the store combines the collective creative power of thousands of artists.

As well as a profitable online retail outfit, the website is an important hub for thousands of small UK artisans and businesses. The website’s partnership programme is a vital lifeline for smaller craft businesses. By gaining access to the market via NOTHS, these UK micro-businesses can continue to dedicate themselves to creating awesome products, making a living from what they love to do the most.

Ethical, personalised, and unique, the website strives to connect small creative businesses with customers. This great ethos is met by Holly’s and Sophie’s drive to make shopping into a more fulfilling experience. It’s great to see a business that’s championing smaller businesses and keeping the UK’s craft and artisan economy alive.

This Mum Runs — Mums coming together

“It started one damp night in November 2014, when Mum of two, Mel Bound, put a desperate shout out for a running buddy on Facebook. With two kids under 5, a busy job, and long commute, any hope of time to herself, let alone to exercise, seemed lost and she wanted (needed) to Sort. It. Out.” 

Mel’s cry for help has now blossomed into a community of thousands of women, with plans to launch the business globally after first conquering the UK.

With regular running groups, a running coach training programme, and a branded swag store, Mel’s initial idea has blossomed into an inspiring and diverse business. At This Mum Runs, it’s all about embracing the funny side of motherhood and life, and taking time out for yourself when you need it the most.

It was a real stroke of genius to create branded activewear and prints alongside the main running business. The beautiful online store built on Shopify helps solidify This Mum Runs as a community and lifestyle brand as well as an innovative female-led business.

Fueled by a simple need for exercise, Mel has built an empire that is empowering women from all walks of life.

Blaze — Life-saving technology

We all know how dangerous cycling in cities like London can be — enter Blaze. All about making urban cycling safer and smarter, Blaze has found a way to fix a common problem in a simple and innovative way. Their bike burners and laserlights ensure people’s safety as they drive around London’s congested streets.

A simple idea championed by co-founders Emily Brooke and Philip Ellis, the startup has got some pretty powerful backing from influential places like Boris bikes.

A great testament to how a simple solution can often be the best; and we love the company’s safety-focused, yet cool, ethos.

The Huffington Post — lifestyle content re-invented

The iconic Greek-American media mogul, Arianna Huffington, has been instrumental to the way in which we all consume news. Since its 2005 launch, The Huffington Post has become one of the world’s most influential news sources. In 2011, it was acquired for $315 Million by AOL.

Its success over the last 13 years was largely thanks to the foresight of one its co-founders, Arianna Huffington. Arianna is a Cambridge graduate, author and occasional actress.

In 2005, she saw that the mood of the time: “wellness and self-help” would enable the HuffPost team to get the sponsorship they needed to further their news site’s appeal.

Their first sponsor, Weight Watchers, helped solidify HuffPost’s feel-good factor we know and love today. One of the most popular parts of the site is its dedicated Good News section, which only includes positive news stories.

Arianna Huffington’s journey is packed with wisdom and plenty of good ideas that have helped her many staff and contributors build successful careers on their own terms.

In an interview with Carly Schwartz, Co-Founding Editor of San Francisco’s HuffPost, she said that Arianna still takes time out to communicate with staff. Arianna knows everyone by name, and allows her team a free reign over their schedules. Team members are able to work from home if they wish, or take a writer’s retreat break after a big deadline.

Creating a positive, feel-good environment breeds inspiration. As a female entrepreneur, this can be vital way of encouraging and empowering a loyal team.

Uncharted Power — energy disruptors

Uncharted Power is not your average energy company — they are disrupting the energy industry.

The Unchartered team firmly believes that anything that moves can harvest energy. Their goal is to transform the way the world thinks about sustainable power sources.

The technical team, headed by Jessica O’Matthews, create micro-generators and grids around the world. They use specific energy-harvesting technology in flooring, speed bumps, even baby strollers! In fact, they can pretty much tailor a custom energy harvesting solution for any and every company in need of sustainable power.

Jessica developed the idea when she was just 19 years old; the first energy harvesting grid launched when she was 23. Now at 30 years old, Jessica has spent the last decade focussing on becoming the best business leader she can be.

In an interview with Creators, Jessica explained how she has worked hard to change perceptions about not only energy, but cultural diversity in the world of business.

Her best advice for female entrepreneurs is:

“A lot of people talk about diversity almost as a charity. To me, diversity is the key to maintaining your business. It is internally disrupting your business so that it’s not externally disrupted by other businesses. Women should embrace this advantage of being able to look at situations in a new way, because smart business means having the ability to do just that.”

Female business owners should take note of the current technological climate; revolutionary technology startups are cropping up every single day. Think of ways your business can utilise things like renewable energy sources and embrace the latest tech. 

Bobbi Brown Cosmetics — makeup re-invented

The infamous Bobbi Brown Cosmetics is known for its natural aesthetic. Bobbi Brown (the lady behind this iconic brand) started off as a freelance makeup artist working in New York during the 1980’s.

At the time, heavy contouring and shockingly false-looking makeup was all the rage. Bobbi, on the other hand, despised this overdone look and was sick of the greasy, heavily pigmented lipsticks stocked at makeup counters.

She decided to launch her own makeup brand, one that was designed to enhance natural features, rather than disguise them with layers of product.

At the heart, of the company is Bobbi Brown herself, a real inspiration to business leaders around the world. She has written a plethora of books on all aspects of what it means to be beautiful, which to her, means to be yourself.

She also surrounds herself with people that she trusts, to help with all aspects of the business and give herself the space to be creative.

For instance, when Bobbi stepped down as head of her eponymous brand in 2016, she looked into exciting new retail avenues to explore instead. Through her work in merchandising, Bobbi set up her own lifestyle brand — one that includes clothing, gifts, and interiors.

With her sights set on reviving the somewhat lagging retail industry, she believes that shoppers can get excited about shopping again through curated retail experiences. In a CNBC interview,  Bobbi said that many people would love to be able to buy Ralph Lauren’s favorite olive oil brand or kitchenware- — buying into a ‘lifestyle’ rather than a product.

Retail environments, lovingly curated by exciting personalities is a surefire trend to start experimenting with, even if you’re starting out as a new business and creating your first online store.  Think of ways that you can bring your personal brand as a female entrepreneur to the forefront. Start experimenting by recommending products you use and love through your social media feeds. Use your site’s blog pages to promote your lifestyle message. 

There you have five female-led businesses I’d love to work for. All of these amazing women have started off with just a great idea and had the focus to stick it out until they reached their goals. 

Disrupting industries with your plans is becoming more plausible as technologies continuously evolve. Make the best use of your business contacts and be open and fearless with your long-term career goals. 

Victoria Greene is a brand marketing consultant and writer. Her blog, Victoriaecommerce, offers actionable advice to female leaders-in-the-making. Big fan of community-conscious marketing.