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PODCAST

Millie Flemington-Clare: Winning a £50,000 grant and building an inclusive makeup brand | Small Business Sessions (S9E9)

Millie Flemington-Clare: Winning a £50,000 grant and building an inclusive makeup brand | Small Business Sessions (S9E9)
Dan Martin
Dan MartinDan Martin Content & Events

Posted: Wed 10th Dec 2025

The Small Business Sessions, Enterprise Nation's podcast, is back for a ninth exciting series of inspiring entrepreneurial stories and expert business tips!

The podcast is powered by the business.connected online training programme and our partner Vodafone Business.


Episode nine: Millie Flemington-Clare, Human Beauty

Joining freelance journalist Dan Martin for the ninth episode is Millie Flemington-Clare, founder of accessible and inclusive makeup brand Human Beauty.

Millie was born with a rare genetic condition called Cystinosis, which affects only 3,000 people worldwide. Her frustration with the lack of accessible products in the beauty industry inspired her to start her own brand.

Human Beauty sells products designed for disabled and neurodivergent people, featuring anti-roll packaging, sensory-friendly formulas, and QR codes with audio descriptions.

Millie has won several awards and secured funding from a range of sources, including a £50,000 grant from Innovate UK and investment on BBC TV's Dragons' Den.

Beyond Human Beauty, Millie works as a design and accessibility consultant, helping brands and institutions build inclusion into their foundations.

Topics discussed in the episode:

  • Turning ideas into physical products.

  • How Millie is shaking up the makeup industry.

  • How Millie won £50,000 funding and her tips for successful grant applications.

  • The impact of appearing on Dragons' Den.

  • What more needs to be done to support disabled entrepreneurs.

  • Why Millie's community is so vital to the business and how she engages them.


Listen to the audio podcast


Where to listen, watch and subscribe


You can also listen on other platforms and Enterprise Nation.

You can watch and subscribe to the podcast on YouTube.


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Dan Martin
Dan MartinDan Martin Content & Events
I'm a freelance content creator and event host who helps small businesses and the organisations that support them. I'm also host of Enterprise Nation's Small Business sessions podcast and editor of SMEWeb.com. I have over 20 years of experience as a small business journalist having interviewed hundreds of entrepreneurs from famous names like Sir Richard Branson and Deborah Meaden to the founders behind brand new start-ups. I've worked for a range of leading small business publications and support groups, including as head of content at Enterprise Nation where I was responsible for the prolific output of content on the company's blog and social media. I'm based in Bristol where I work with Bristol Creative Industries, the not-for-profit that supports the creative industries in Bristol and the wider region. In total, I've hosted over 100 events including conferences with an audience of hundreds for international brands like Xero and Facebook and live web chats from inside 10 Downing Street. With my partner, I run Lifestyle District, a lifestyle blog focused on culture, art, theatre and photography.

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