Helen – Page 236 – Business Plus Baby

July 8, 2011October 2, 2011

Stepping off the corporate ladder: Michelle Wright of Colourwheel Creative

There was a point in my life all I wanted to do was to climb the ‘corporate ladder’ – and to be honest , I actually managed to get quite far up… I remember that somebody once said to me ‘the higher you climb, the further you fall’…. Well the time came after having my first child to fall… well, more of a sort of ‘jump splash push’, if you get my drift.. but that’s a whole other story!

So after my ‘ladder jump’ I brushed myself off and started again. A couple of part time jobs later, a few missed key moments in my daughters childhood, and many a stressful time juggling work with either a poorly child or home commitments and I decided to start building ‘my own ladder’. Continue reading “Stepping off the corporate ladder: Michelle Wright of Colourwheel Creative”

July 7, 2011

Business Mums Blog Carnival for July

Are you a mum with a business and a blog? Join in the July Business Mums Blog Carnival and get yourself more readers and comments!

You don’t even need to write a post for the carnival, just pick your favourite from the posts already up on your blog and send the link to the carnival host. This month your host is Tracey-Jane at support4women.net

To enter, email the link to your post to t-j (at) bras4mums.co.uk by 13th July.

The carnival will be posted on support4women.net on 15th July.

If you’re not sure how it all works or what kind of post to enter, you’ll find everything you need to know on the Business Mum’s Blog Carnival page. And you can get your own blog carnival badge there too!

July 6, 2011August 1, 2011

Setting up an online shop: Pros and cons of each type

If you’re thinking of starting an online shop you might be surprised at the number of options available to you. Working out whether to use eBay, Amazon or to get your own website is enough to make your head spin, so here’s a quick guide to the pros and cons of each different type of shop.

If you’re wondering how to tell which is best for you, think about what you’re going to be selling, the level of technical skill you have, your budget and how likely you are to want to grow the shop later on. You can run two different shops alongside one another (many business mums have both an eBay shop and their own website) or you could (say) start with eBay and build your own website later on.

There’s more about actually starting up in my article how to start an online shop. Continue reading “Setting up an online shop: Pros and cons of each type”

July 4, 2011June 28, 2011

How to get a better credit score

When I signed up for a new mobile phone contract last year I had a nasty shock – my credit score was so low they wouldn’t let me take out the contract!

My credit score had always been really good up until then, so I was mortified. It turned out that as I hadn’t applied for any credit in my married name and the credit checking companies hadn’t linked my maiden and married names together into one credit history. So in the end there was no need to panic. Although it did make me realise how important it is to keep a good credit score.

If you’d like to improve your credit score or hang on to good one you’ve already got, you can pick up some tips in this useful little video.

This is just one of the videos from Capital One’s Credit Made Clearer campaign. You can check out the rest of the series on the Credit Made Clearer YouTube channel and website.

July 1, 2011July 1, 2011

I started a business with a baby: Cathy Belford of Discover Me Toys

Tell us a little about your business

DiscoverMe Toys is an online toy store specialising in educational toys that complement the 6 key learning areas of EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage). Our toys include traditional wooden toys, beautifully hand-crafted jigsaw puzzles, activity toys, books and games. I love the toys available at DiscoverMe and we have 2 little product testers to put the toys through their paces. We have recently received a Gold Website Award from MumpreneurUK.

What was your job before starting your business?

I worked in recruitment after graduating from University, specialising in business development and account management working with many of the UK’s leading IT companies.

How did you go from your old career to your new business?

I was made redundant a couple of weeks before my first son arrived on the scene and had a few difficult months but ultimately this made me more determined to realize my ambitions and go into business by myself. Continue reading “I started a business with a baby: Cathy Belford of Discover Me Toys”