Meet the women who are doing the business and making a difference

Deputy Business Editor Greg Wright meets a networking group whose support and advice has had a huge impact on the lives of budding businesswomen in East Yorkshire.

THERE'S nothing rustic or insular about rural businesses – just ask the members of Meet!.

Meet! is a networking group, started by three friends, which has grown to offer support and advice to hundreds of female entrepreneurs in Yorkshire.

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Meet!, which was founded in April 2007, has helped women involved in a variety of businesses in East and North Yorkshire, to fulfil their potential.

Three years on, around 400 women entrepreneurs have attended networking events and training sessions organised by Meet!.

They include a textile artist whose work has appeared in a show inspired by The Lord of the Rings, and a woman who is trying to ensure more people end their lives in a setting of their choice.

Meet! was established by Tracey Batey, of three60 marketing and PR, Claire Burcham, of Thrive Coaching, and web designer Katrina Thompson, to provide a networking group that goes "the extra, pastoral mile".

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A large number of members live close to Beverley, in East Yorkshire, and run businesses in remote, rural settings.

The not-for-profit group holds monthly meetings at The Ferguson Fawsitt pub, in Walkington, near Beverley.

Ms Burcham recalled: "We wanted to create a friendly environment and open it up to as many people as possible. The big thing is sharing experiences. Women are very honest. They will tell you that they have lost their one and only client. Somebody else will say 'Don't lose faith'."

Ms Batey added: "We invite ladies to come along who are either in business or thinking about setting up, so that we can provide support in the early days.

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"We had no idea there were so many female small business owners in East Yorkshire, so, in that respect, our expectations have been exceeded."

Ms Thompson said: "Many of our members go on to work together. I think networking is important, especially during tough times. While people are spending less, they're more likely to spend in their own region to support local jobs.

"Tough times help businesses work harder to survive and Meet! provides a good place to bounce these problems and new ideas around.

"It's lovely to watch someone join Meet! with an idea, and,

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two years down the track, be giving out advice to new members."

Network members include Mandy Thomlinson, the co-founder of Respect Our Wishes, a business that encourages people to form detailed plans about how they wish to spend their final days.

She said Meet! had helped her to gain confidence, adding: "A lot of women don't like standing up and making pitches."

Many businesses have a creative streak. Heather Hayward's family have been farming around the village of Bishop Burton since the 1600s. She lets out buildings on her Cold Harbour Farm estate to artists.

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She said: "There's no pressure on you at Meet!. You can go and talk about non-work related things."

Yvonne Green, who runs Rainbows, a company which provides advice on personal development, said: "We teach what we most need to learn. I was telling people to put themselves forward, but I wasn't actually doing it myself."

Many of the members have produced goods that can be seen in places far removed from East Yorkshire.

Textile artist Corinne Young, of Ecoteriors, based in Driffield, was recently commissioned to design and make textile hangings in connection with a show about JRR Tolkien's novel, The Lord of the Rings, which was held in Toronto and London.

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She loves the tranquility and rural peace of East Yorkshire, and the close-knit business community.

Lynda Worsnop, of Oak House Studio, which is based in Beverley, said one of the great strengths of networking with Meet! was that members were not competing with each other.

She added: "We can talk and support each other in smaller groups. Acquaintances have become friends."

Karen Adams, whose business, PastSearch, provides guided walks around York and heritage photographs and calendars, said: "It's great to meet other women who have the enthusiasm to try to set up their own business.

"It's really scary if you are just doing it by yourself."

Ladies in good company

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Meet! is a testament to the vast range of small companies run by women in East and North Yorkshire.

They include a ceramic artist – Jill Ford Ceramics – and businesses such as Karina's Nutrition, which is run by Karina Clappison, and Katerina Steventon's FaceWorkshops, which encourage people to adopt a healthier diet and look after their appearance.

Other women who are part of the network include Su Dillon, of Travel Counsellors, Sheila Hudson, of The HR Department, and Joanne Boyd-White, of Angelic Angels, a nanny recruitment agency.

Andrea Riby's company – And All Things Nice – provides gifts for special occasions such as weddings, while Janine Holland's Infinite SP can help firms with accountancy and management consultancy services.