Crafty Cottage
A mum from Coventry is to open a craft shop which will be home to the city’s first Fairtrade café. Joanne Watson will launch her venture Crafty Cottage in May after receiving a loan from a fund set up to help businesses which struggle to secure investment from conventional sources.

Wilmot Simpson legal practice
A holiday to Jamaica inspired a Birmingham woman to set up her own legal practice. Fay Shorter was looking for a new challenge after working at Lyons Davidson Solicitors in Solihull for ten years.

Absolutely Gardens
A fledgling gardening company is blooming with success after receiving a helping hand from a leading women’s business support agency.

AEP Consultancy
A Coventry researcher and auditor has thanked a leading women’s business support organisation for helping to set up her business. Julie Murphy has launched AEP Consultancy after receiving advice and support from the city-based Regional Women’s Enterprise Unit (RWEU).

Lost Property Performance Company
Two women who met at Coventry University have taken advantage of a free business advice service in the city to launch a theatre and performance company.

Independent Speech and Language Therapy
A Nuneaton speech and language therapist has urged women considering becoming self-employed to take advantage of services offered by a leading women’s business support organisation.

Optima QVK Ltd
When MG Rover closed in April 2005, Dupé Adeoye found herself out of work. The natural thing to do was to find another job as quickly as possible or was it?

The Chocolate Tailor
Jackie Roberts tells us how she decided to finish employment at college and started her business providing, “a range of delicious chocolates tailored to your chocoholic needs”.

Women in Mind sportswear
Carmen and Laura Nash explain their business - Women in Mind and how they got things off the ground

Magnetic Creative activities
It is not only children that can have fun at community events thanks to a new business set up by a Leamington woman. Pamela Dunsdon has launched Magnetic which organises fun and creative projects, events and workshops for adults.

Buddieguard wins Innovation Award
Tracey Budd has been presented with the Best Business Innovation Award (2006) after developing a finger protection device to prevent hairdressers hurting their fingers while cutting customers’ hair.

Health and Well-Being at www.kanikernaturalhealth.co.uk
Rebecca Alliker from www.kanikernaturalhealth.co.uk tells her inspiring story

Creative Workshops and Visual Arts
Call entre agent Winsome Ruddock gives up a career on the telephone to run art workshops

Rocking Horse Kindergarten
After Nursery Nurse training and gaining NNEB qualifications in 1992, Manjit worked in a childrens nursery where she went on to become Deputy Manager and then Acting Manager before moving to the Coventry area where she took the decision to set up in business on her own.

Monster Mayhem Soft Play Centre and Cafe
Lisa and Leigh-Anne decided to set up their own business to fit in with their need for a flexible career to fit in with where they wanted to go

Funky Tech Ltd
Helen Mossop, an Engineering Graduate decided to fulfill her childhood dream and to use her creative hobby to form Funky Tech Ltd.

Findyouridealbusinesspartner.com
Marcia Blackstock, a Registered Mental Nurse decided to start her own web based business to help people to find their ideal business partner.

4 Afters
Carole Johnston trained as an agricultural chartered surveyor, but decided on a career change, making a hobby into a new business.