1. What inspired you to start your business, and how did your personal experiences shape your entrepreneurial journey?
Farringford Legal is my third business and was borne out of a combination of personal experience and grabbing an opportunity when it presented itself.
I had been running my previous businesses for over a decade and in 2019 took part in the Goldman Sachs 10k Small Business Programme. What was clear from speaking to other SME owners was that there was a real need for affordable legal services delivered by experienced lawyers. On the programme was a mix of people being overcharged and others who were relying on DIY law from the internet.
This led me to set-up Farringford Legal with my fellow founders. I was keen to incorporate my commercial experience with my legal expertise to support other SMEs on their growth journeys.
2. What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a female founder, and how did you overcome them?
I’m not one to take no for an answer and so when faced with challenges around funding and financing I kept knocking on doors and talking to different people until I achieved what I set out to do.
I am fairly fortunate that since running my own business my experience and expertise have been respected, rather than being judged based on my gender.
I have long recognised gender imbalance in the workplace, as my experience of having a family whilst on the partner-track at a Magic Circle law firm was not positive and forced me out of the law for more than a decade.
This has led me to be a passionate supporter of female founders and am constantly looking at ways to make a difference to gender parity in business.
3. How do you balance the demands of running a business with other aspects of your life, such as family, personal time, and self-care?
You’d probably have to ask my family!
But seriously there are definitely things I do.
Firstly, Farringford Legal does not have an office. We all work from home, with regular virtual and in-person meetings. This enables me to collect my daughters from school on a regular basis and means I am in the house to help them when they are home. Even if I am still working!
I love what I do, so find taking time away from the business a struggle. But in the past 12 months I have enjoyed a few holidays with my family. I have an amazing team in place and I know I can leave the business in their capable hands to find some time away.
I exercise in the mornings which is the best time for me. It wakes me up and gives me time to think about the day ahead and what I need to achieve. I also NEED to exercise! I am not an exercise-freak, but I do recognise in myself that when I don’t get my fix for a few days my mood changes. My husband and I have also recently returned to rowing in response to my daughters both enjoying the sport. It’s something we can share as a family which is important to me.
Overall, having a good work:life balance is incredibly important to me, if I feel it is getting too much I try to address it before it gets out of hand and work starts to rule my life too much!
4. In what ways do you believe your entrepreneurial journey has been unique compared to that of male founders?
That’s a tricky one, not having experienced it as a man to make the comparison!
However, I feel incredibly lucky that my personality, education and upbringing (always wanted to be better than my brother!) has meant that I don’t do ‘wallflower’ particularly well!
Saying that, I do wonder if more doors would have been opened for me if I had been a man, in particular one who plays golf!
What I do know is that with less than 2% of funding in the UK going to female-founded business that if and when I need finance I may encounter issues. But with businesses like Female Founder Finance and organisations like The investing in Women Code and the Women Backing Women campaign there is help out there if you know where to look.
5. What advice would you give to other women who are considering starting their own business?
Do it!
You’ll need resilience and a plan. But just do it.
There are amazing networks which have been created to support women founders. I am a member of many of these and this opens doors to business opportunities, advisors and learning.
Do not be afraid to ask for help. I have mentors who are both male and female and I am constantly asking my network for advice and guidance. One of my favourite sayings is ‘It takes a village to grow a child; it takes a community to grow a business.’. You can’t do it on your own!
LINKS
Article on female funding: https://farringfordlegal.co.uk/blog/f/is-gender-bias-an-issue-for-smes
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