Theo Paphitis, House of Lords, Awards and Orkney

It’s been a whirl wind start to the year (2022) ,  with barely any breathing space to recover from the incredible SBS Birmingham event and meeting Theo Paphitis in February to leaving my island home of Lismore on the west of Scotland again and heading to London.

It was a honour and privilege to be among 100 female small business entrepreneurs to win the f: Entrepreneur award #ialso.    The event took place in the House of Lords where we celebrated international womens day, stories were shared and speeches listened to.

Two weeks later I had the eagerly awaited Scotland’s Specialist Food show to attend,  as a solo trader it’s a daunting experience however by the end of the first day Slàinte Sauces had won a bronze! I can’t quite explain what a boost this was for myself and business having only started around 17 months and being judged alongside some of the country’s most amazing food producers.     And with that win the orders have began arriving.

Less than a week later I was flying up to Orkney as a delegate from Argyll and Bute,  along with representatives from Shetland, learning from Orkney food producers how they are able to brand and market so well, which in turn led to me being on BBC radio Orkney to tell all about the experience.

All in all I’ve traveled the breadth of the Uk in the last few weeks and much of the recognition I’m receiving started with winning Theo Paphitis #SBS competition last year. 
Not just from brand awareness which of course I gained a lot of publicity for but that win began to change my mindset, putting me on a much more positive track, a game changer for me and Slàinte Sauces.     
Advice to any small business or startup ENTER competitions that are relevant to you, you’ve nothing to lose and everything to gain. 
Slainte