Over 90 Female Founders Came Together Across Essex This March

Julia Harvey
1 day ago
3 min read

Women Owned Essex members at the Royal Hotel in Southend

Photo credit: Dawn Webb

To celebrate International Women’s Day, we held our two largest Women Owned Essex events to date, welcoming over 90 female founders and business owners across two events in Chelmsford and Southend.

Our Chelmsford event took place at Cheerful Chai, followed by our Southend event at The Royal Hotel Ballroom on 20 March.

Both events were fantastic.

They gave us the opportunity to open up more spaces than usual and welcome more women into the room. Our events typically have smaller numbers and often large waiting lists, so this felt like a really special way to celebrate and bring more people into the community.

Why we created Women Owned Essex

Running a business can be brilliant, but it can also feel quite isolating.

Especially when you’re doing it alongside everything else.

That’s exactly where Women Owned Essex came from.

“Running a business can be isolating, particularly for women juggling multiple responsibilities,” says co-founder Julia Harvey. “What we’re seeing is that when women are given the space to connect and support one another, it has a direct impact on their confidence and their business growth.”

We wanted to create something that felt different from traditional networking.

Less about selling, more about connection.

Co-founder Sarah Pridham explains it best: “This year’s International Women’s Day theme, Give to Gain, reflects exactly what we stand for. We are a free networking community built on generosity. There is no expectation or pressure, just women supporting each other, and that is where the real value comes from.”

What women in business are saying

The word that comes up the most is confidence.

Lisa Brazier from Beach School Explorers said: “It’s a powerful thing when women come together. We share so much, from little comments to big conversations, and it all builds confidence. It makes me smile and feel like I can do anything.”

Sally Mortlock from Chrysalis Healing added: “It’s given me so much more confidence in myself and my business, and I learn from others in the group. It makes me feel I’m not so different. I always come away inspired after hearing everyone’s stories, struggles and achievements.”

That’s the bit you can’t really explain unless you’ve been in the room.

A growing community for women in business in Essex

Women Owned Essex has now been running for two and a half years and continues to grow steadily across Chelmsford, Southend and the wider Essex area.

It’s still free to attend. It’s still built on the same idea.

When women support each other openly and generously, things shift. Confidence grows, opportunities come up, and businesses move forward.

Want to join us?

We meet twice a month, once in Chelmsford and once in Southend.

If you’re running a business and want to connect with other women who get it, you’d be very welcome.

Find out more or book your place: click here

Or come and say hello on Instagram: @womenownedessex

A quick thank you

Thank you to Cheerful Chai in Chelmsford and The Royal Hotel in Southend for hosting us, and to Dawn Webb and Kerry Green for kindly capturing the events.