Helping entrepreneurial women flourish

Emily Moore, journalist from the JEP, spoke to founders Claudia Sutton and Sophie Clyde-Smith about their new life coaching start-up aims to help female leaders break the glass ceiling and flourish in their careers and businesses.

WHEN UK-based entrepreneur Mikela Druckman founded greentech company Greyparrot, she did so having been inspired by women who had ‘broken barriers in their barriers’.

‘When most of the people in the room are male, it can create an imbalance,’ she said. ‘But being able to be connected with peers going through the same thing is incredibly beneficial to the entrepreneurial journey. It’s not an easy journey, but it’s probably one of the most rewarding journeys you can have.’

Two women for whom Mikela’s words strike a particular chord are Claudia Sutton and Sophie Clyde-Smith. Recognising both the Island’s entrepreneurial culture and the barriers that can be faced by women trying to launch their own businesses, the two friends and transformational life coaches launched Alt Collective last November.

‘Essentially, Alt Collective exists to support women on their entrepreneurial journey,’ explained Sophie. ‘We want to connect people through our events, inspire them to follow their dreams and empower them, through our coaching services, to overcome their fears and make that transition.’

It is a transition which Claudia and Sophie have seen many women make over the past couple of years.

‘In my role at Rowlands, I have seen lots of new businesses and industries launch in the Island in the past year or two, and both Sophie and I could feel the entrepreneurial spirit over here,’ said Claudia. ‘I think that entrepreneurialism has grown during lockdown, as the situation has forced people to think outside the box and find new ways of doing things.

‘A lot of people also returned to the Island during lockdown as they wanted to be closer to family and reconnect with nature, and that has brought a real spark to the local business and entrepreneurial community.’

Indeed, were it not for lockdown, Alt Collective itself might not have come into being. ‘I was working in London at the beginning of 2019, running my own coaching business, when the pandemic hit and my husband and I decided to return to Jersey for what we thought would be a couple of months,’ smiled Sophie.

Having both grown up in Jersey, the two women met when they both worked at Rowlands recruitment agency.

‘I studied biomedical science at Leeds University but after graduating, despite being really passionate about health and wellness, I wasn’t sure how I could apply that in my career,’ Sophie reflected. ‘I more or less fell into recruitment, which I absolutely loved. When I decided to go travelling after a year at Rowlands, I appointed Claudia to my role. When, a year after that, Claudia decided to go travelling, I took her job back.’

After this somewhat unconventional job share, it was a desire to return to her health and wellness roots which took Sophie to London, where she joined a wellness media company, while also obtaining her coaching qualification.

And it was Sophie’s decision to launch her own coaching business which inspired Claudia’s professional development.

‘Sophie and I had always been quite aligned in the way we like to work, and when she launched her business I saw the opportunity to help the people who I was working with at Rowlands in a more holistic way,’ explained Claudia, who is still a senior recruitment manager at the firm. ‘I then coached some of Sophie’s clients while she was on maternity leave, and that’s when we started talking about the need for a support network for female entrepreneurs.’

It was as these conversations progressed that the women started thinking about female role models within the Island.

‘Traditionally, I think a lack of female role models has been a barrier to many women thinking about launching a business, but that is changing,’ said Sophie. ‘When we first launched Alt Collective, we sat down and, between us, came up with 50 local women who we knew were either freelancing, had established businesses or were thinking about doing so.’

Despite this entrepreneurial enthusiasm, Sophie says launching a business in the Island – something of which she has first-hand experience – is not easy.

‘There is a huge amount of red tape to get through, and it is not easy from a tax, regulatory or Social Security perspective. While there are benefits – such as zero tax – for corporate institutions, there are few benefits for smaller start-ups,’ she said. ‘One of the things we would like to do in the future is help to create some change in this environment to support small businesses.’

And the regulatory side is just one of the barriers which Claudia and Sophie feel that many women experience.

‘I think a lot of women struggle with their confidence and mindset. They tend to be more risk-averse than men and, despite more and more women now taking on senior roles in companies, it is still harder for female entrepreneurs to secure funding or investment for a business,’ said Claudia.

Indeed, nationally, the amount of equity raised by female-led businesses stands at 15%, a figure which has remained constant for the past five years.

‘We know there is a massive gender gap when it comes to funding but we have also seen a number of local women secure investment and, through our events, they are able to share their stories and inspire and empower other women to follow in their footsteps,’ Claudia added.

Alt Collective has already welcomed a number of local entrepreneurs to their events, with past speakers including Awabi co-founder Hayley Yu, The Mum Club co-founder Lauren Webber, Locke’s co-owner Ella Locke and retailer Harriet Rose.

‘By interviewing locally-based women about their experiences, we give our members vital insights into areas such as securing funding, balancing work and family life and developing that entrepreneurial mindset,’ said Sophie. ‘The energy that comes from these events is incredible and really shows what can be achieved if you can overcome your initial fears.’

Giving an example of that, Sophie referenced Hayley’s story.

‘She grew up in Jersey and returned to the Island a couple of years ago after living in Hong Kong. She and her brother were really keen to launch Awabi, but they knew that what they wanted to do was so different from anything over here, that they were fearful about how it would be perceived,’ she explained.

‘However, despite their fears, they refused to compromise on their values and went on to launch a really successful restaurant, introducing a new dining concept to the Island.’

‘Hayley’s story was also inspirational because that was the second business she had launched in the Island,’ added Claudia. ‘As an architect, she couldn’t see any local firms which aligned with the work she wanted to do so, instead of conforming, she decided to create her own practice, Atelier Noad & Yu.’

Her example is, Claudia says, one from which other people can learn.

‘I think Jersey is becoming more and more diverse but I also think it’s important for anyone either already here, or thinking about coming back to the Island, to realise that there is tremendous scope to create opportunities here,’ she said. ‘Alt Collective helps you to realise those possibilities and to appreciate the potential to work in areas outside financial services.’

That diversity was a factor in the choice of the name Alt Collective.

‘Alt represents those alternative career options,’ smiled Claudia. ‘We are not exclusive to people from any particular sector but have members from legal and professional services industries alongside restaurateurs, retailers and people who are specialising in nutrition or yoga. We represent a hugely diverse community, and I think that really helps to demonstrate that you can succeed in any field.’

Another speaker who inspired the women was photographer Sophie Darwin.

‘She is a really good example of someone who has turned a hobby into a business,’ said Claudia. ‘She had just built up enough of a client base to launch the business full-time when Covid struck. Although the timing couldn’t have been worse, she managed to change direction and build her business despite the pandemic.

‘What her talk showed was that, often, fear stops people from acting, as they imagine the worst-case scenarios. She showed that, even when you do encounter that scenario, by innovating, you can still be successful. In fact, it’s not until you take the plunge and do things that you learn just what you can achieve.’

The next Alt Collective event – Jersey Female Founder Stories – will take place at Locke’s from 6pm on 7 April 2022.

At the event, attendees will hear from speakers Pippa Campbell, Emiko Caerlewy-Smith and Jane James, who will share their experiences about launching and running both local and international businesses. More information and tickets are available from alt-collective.co.uk or @altcollectivejsy on Instagram.