What an amazing opportunity it was to work with Virgin Startup for their Women’s Entrepreneurship Day event on 19th November, as part of Global Entrepreneurship Week 2014.

The event took place at a beautiful, rustic location north of Old Street and had more than 100 existing and aspiring entrepreneurs. After chatting with many of the women in attendance, it was clear that most of them were primarily looking to connect with others and gain inspiration from others’ accomplishments.

Goodies for the event were even served up by business owners who had been through Virgin Startup’s programme themselves, a unique approach indeed. One such company was Dark Matters, dishing out fudgy, moist, chocolately chunks of oh-so-heavenly brownies.

Mmmmmm! Anyway, back to the event…

We set up our own Girls in Tech stand, which attracted many interested women, keen to find out more about our mission and monthly events.

The day was jam-packed with individual talks, including baby food mogul Annabel Karmel and founder of Ann Sumers, Jacqueline Gold, as well as panels with women representing big companies like Google and Ocado.

Some of our favourite quotes from the day:

“Quit talking about it, just get on with it.” – Sharmadean Reid, founder of WAH Nails

“Don’t tell someone your idea and ask what they think about it, ask why they think it will fail.” – Annabel Karmel

“Think about why you got here and how you got here – and what difference you want to make. Everyone has a story.” – Business consultant Madeline McQueen

Finally, let’s not forget about the delicious lunch delivered by the lovely ladies behind Lunch Box London.

It’s very clear from the events we run, plus those we run along with others, as well as the events we attend, that getting women together in a positive environment is the best way to bring empowerment to all. You can feel how the energy in the room lights everyone up, and everyone walks away with the tools they need to either improve their startup or get started on an idea they’ve been thinking about for a while.

Thank you again to Virgin Startup and everyone involved who made this amazing day possible. We cannot recommend Virgin Startup enough if you are looking for a business loan to get yourself started. They provide access to funding and mentoring, which you can find out more about here. We can’t wait to work together again!