Jane Wiest
Initially London
https://InitiallyLondon.com/Former City banker Jane Wiest began Initially London after buying a professional embroidery machine to label the belongings of her four children. It was when friends asked her where she had found a monogramming service that she saw the opportunity to turn her hobby into a business. She now employs a team of 8 embroiderers from a workshop in southwest London and was recently named Small Employer of the Year in Kensington and Chelsea by the RBKC Business Awards.
In spite of Jane’s background working with mature companies in the financial services and retail industries, and gaining an MBA from Yale University, she says the practice of running her own business has taught her far more than she could ever learn in an academic setting. Her advice to budding entrepreneurs is to make bold moves, trust your instincts and take calculated risks.