Enterprise Nation

Jane Kenyon and Yvonne Halling are the co-founders of Well Heeled Divas Ltd. The company is in the business of training, personal development and coaching. The two main ladies step into the hot seat to answer some home business questions.

How did you meet each other?

We both used the same company to manage our IT and the owner suggested we meet as he thought we’d get on. We did!

What were you doing before you started the business?

Jane  - I’ve been a serial entrepreneur for the past 15 years so I’ve always had business interests. I coach, speak and often get involved in consultancy projects.

Yvonne -  I had been living overseas for 15 years, supporting my corporate husband and having business interests of my own.  I came back to the UK in 2004 and decided to do something that would share my experiences with others who could benefit.

What is the nature of the business?

Well Heeled Divas is dedicated to inspiring women to start businesses. We host motivational events, run workshops, mastermind groups and operate a coaching service.

As a partnership, do you have complementary skills and well defined roles in the business?

Yes,  Jane is a ‘star’ profile and promotes the brand, through networking, speaking and connecting with people.  Yvonne is a ‘creator’ profile and is mainly concerned with product development, funding and financial management. This is why our partnership works well.

How are you marketing the company?

We have a PR freelancer working with us, we network and speak wherever possible, we are constantly developing affiliate relationships with organizations that share our vision, we advertise on and offline and have a team of Brand Ambassadors (Divas) who refer business to us all the time.  We generate over 80% of our business via word of mouth.

How do you communicate with each other?

Phone, text, email and face to face EVERYDAY!

You recently took on external funding. Why did you do this and how did you find the experience?

We recognized that we needed support to fund our growth.  The business was launched in July 07 and the market response was fast and furious!   We needed some working capital and a marketing budget.  It was a positive experience.

What are your plans for the future?

We have a global vision.  We want to create a Diva movement and have a global brand within 5 years.  We’re currently developing an online community strategy, a nationwide mentoring programme for young girls and a charity foundation.  We intend to licence our materials and services and have a presence in every UK city within 3 years and globally within 5 years.

Go for it, Divas!

Jane Kenyon and Yvonne Halling talk to Emma Jones 

• Well Heeled Divas