After my father passed away when I was just five years old, my mother remarried when I was fourteen...to a Frenchman called, Jean Alain. I call him a Frenchman, but he was really a Breton, with French being his second language. This was the start of my love affair with France. We would spend school holidays in France, I swore that I would live in France when I grew up. Alas, I was to wait almost forty years to make my dreams come true. Throughout those years at work I never lost the dream, but life got in the way, having children took priority.

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My first real job was in an accountancy firm and this is where my passion for small businesses started. I prepared the accounts for them and developed a sound business acumen. My background afterwards was in the Nuclear Industry, acting as the conduit between reprocessing and its customers, shipping radioactive material around the world and managing two programmes of work with a lifetime value of over £5b.

Latterly, I coached other professionals within the nuclear industry to deliver their change programmes. 

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Then Brexit happened!

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To many it was disastrous, but it actually gave me the kick that I needed to finally realise my dreams, it was now or never.

It wasn't easy as we moved right in the middle of the Covid pandemic.

It was lonely, as my husband was still at work in UK.  Eymet became my safety net. I honestly do not know how I would have coped alone, in a foreign country and with forty year old school taught French. The community that was Eymet was  helpful and caring and I really felt at home because of this. 

 

Now here in France, I have two businesses.

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I noticed in my first few years here in France that there are so many expats (English speaking businesses) looking for work and not being noticed except on Facebook. Additionally, I noticed many members of local Facebook groups trying to find a tradesmen or outlet and finding it frustrating when scrolling through endless posts and comments to find what they were looking for.  With some FB groups turning into a constant reel of advertisements. There had to be an easier way of finding something.  So I started this business which is just for English speakers (whatever nationality) to connect with ready-to-buy customers.

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The other business is called Biz Savvy, rebranded recently from the Lead Coach (this name having come from my last paid employment), and it is to provide business support in whatever form, to businesses that need a bit of the safety net that Eymet had provided for me in the early period of time when I came to France. I have written pocket-sized business guides to help fill the skills gaps that entrepreneurs or employees may have. ​Recently I have undertaken some market research work in the village, this is ongoing. My skills in Business  include, Project, Change, Programme, Portfolio, Accountancy and Business Management, the list goes on a bit, but they are all backed up with appropriate qualifications. I have also captured tips and techniques in the blogs I have developed through which, I share my experiences, gained through a lifetime of working in  businesses, and which have helped me to be where I am today.​​ ​​

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Ultimately, I think you can see that I am passionate about business generally,  and in making each business successful. 

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As many retirees find, retirement is not very taxing on the brain and so I find that these activities keep me sane.  I see these two businesses as hobby's really.

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My main goal, for both businesses, is to help other business-minded people to succeed. I firmly believe that knowledge should be accessible to all. By sharing my journey and experiences, these businesses can learn and navigate their own paths.

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