With International Women’s Day coming up this Friday 8th March, we shine a light on fantastic female entrepreneurs who are paving the way towards gender parity.
Jodi Muter-Hamilton, Founder of Black Neon Digital communications agency:
What does feminism mean to you?
Since having children it has grown to mean something more than It did previously as I now think about how I can help my daughter and son understand what it takes to get on in life as a woman. Running a business and paying childcare costs certainly sharpens the mind. For me, feminism or being a feminist means tackling the problems that prevent us from being where we want to be. I want to approach this as I do with everything else, from a place of positivity, but even that can be challenging due to the uphill struggle of say closing the gender pay gap. A positive element is how we can all come together to make these changes happen.
How are you celebrating International Women’s Day?
It’s great to see that IWD become more of a week-long celebration/campaign rather than just one day. Also, it gives us a chance to think about how we could be more impactful. So I’ve been making sure that this week I’m taking time to put ideas that have been in my mind for some time firmly on the agenda. Which involves working with amazing women on projects that help us all to further our vision, businesses and hopefully, the wider fashion industry and people in general! Alongside this, I’m attending Women In Innovation X Farfetch event, and writing an IWD article that will appear on Proximity Insight (a retail tech firm I work with) and an adapted version online at Black Neon Digital.
Noushin Arshad, celebrity hair stylist and founder of Arabella Rose:
What do you think of International Women’s Day?
It’s a day to think seriously about the power of entrepreneurship to drive social change globally, and with only 20% of businesses in the UK run by a woman there’s still much work to do here too.
How do you empower women through your business?
Running a hair extensions specialist salon gives me the chance to help women become more confident in themselves. It’s such a great feeling to watch the women walk out of here with their heads held high when they first came in shy and quiet. It gives women the chance to shine and be their best selves when they don’t have to worry about how they look because they always look fabulous.
