On Saturday, April 25, the grand opening of UBWIS CLUB Cambridge – a business club for Ukrainian women entrepreneurs in East Anglia – took place in Cambridge.
New space – new opportunities
The event was held at Anstey Hall, a historic 17th-century mansion built around 1685 by Anthony Thompson on the site of an early medieval house. For one day, Anstey Hall became a meeting place for women from Cambridge, London, East Anglia and Scotland who are interested in developing their own projects, building partnerships and expanding professional connections.
The event program consisted of four panels. During a panel discussion on the topic “Ambitions Without Borders: How to Build a Business and a Name in the UK”, the participants of the event heard real success stories of three entrepreneurs from Ukraine and were able to ask them their questions. Thus, the young restaurateur Yelizaveta Tataryna inspired the participants with a personal example, because at the age of 22, the girl has already won a large grant, with this money she opened three vegan establishments in London and is preparing to open a fourth. An expert in AI education and influencer Olga Reznikova, who has over 200 thousand followers on Instagram, spoke about her experience working in England and how video content can give results. And a certified coach according to the international ICF system, Viktoria Blagovisna, emphasized that you can start your own business many times, declare yourself, change the country, but the only thing that remains with each of us is experience and knowledge, so it is very important to correctly apply them in new life conditions.
The women were happy to share their impressions of the event and said that they finally feel each other’s support, because uncertainty scares everyone, but together – it is easier.
The Deputy Mayor, Councillor Richard Swift, came to welcome the participants of the new space for Ukrainian women.
– I think that the opening of the UBWIS CLUB in Cambridge is a continuation of many Ukrainian initiatives that have already taken place in Cambridge, – he emphasized. – There are 200 Ukrainian families living in Cambridge, so many Ukrainian children study in local schools. There is a Ukrainian Studies section at the University of Cambridge. In general, we have a good infrastructure and base for the participation of Ukrainians, their naturalization and the development of the local community.
According to the manager of UBWIS Club Cambridge, Tetyana Olevska, about 50 participants came to the opening.
– The main goal of the event is to launch a branch in Cambridge, which will unite Ukrainian women entrepreneurs – a “club of business interests”, – she explained to the publication Business Woman. – Currently, there are 10 participants in the Cambridge branch. I consider this a good indicator of the club’s work in just a month and a half (after all, we started holding introductory meetings on March 1 of this year). This is confirmation that there is a demand for such a format.
The center of the branch is located in Cambridge, but the founders want it to become a center for East Anglia. So in the near future plans:
– expanding geography (now women from different cities around it, as well as from Norfolk, Essex and Bedford, come to Cambridge);
– increasing the number of club members, which will create more opportunities for collaborations between local businesses;
– cooperation with local business communities and businesses;
– close interaction with all branches of the club in the UK.
The power of connecting female entrepreneurs
The Cambridge branch became the fourth after Edinburgh (2022, Scotland), London and Manchester, and has every chance of becoming a new wave of manifestation of active women. UBWIS CLUB positions itself as a community for women who think ambitiously, value the quality of their environment and strive for growth – both in business and in their personal lives.
According to the founder of UBWIS CLUB, Anna Andrievskaya, who flew west from Scotland, among the club’s achievements over the four years of its existence are: involvement in a large-scale study in the UK – The Cedar research (in particular, work in a focus group), joint events with local business clubs (EBS, Forth Valley Chamber), presentation of the participants’ businesses for the local market as part of the Ukrainian Business Women project, participation in the largest digital conference E-Commerce Conference and cooperation with specialists for online meetings.
Currently, the business club has united 135 businesswomen representing more than 20 business areas, including: landscape design, AI&Tech (Artificial Intelligence), restaurant business, coaching, tourism, real estate, etc.
Thanks to the club, businesswomen have found versatile networking and mentoring in the right field. Another strong point of UBWIS CLUB is the work of the grant department, which helps create the right requests for grants.
The successful development of the women’s business community in Scotland and England proves that the power of connecting women entrepreneurs is especially important today. Women are ready to help each other overcome obstacles, celebrate successes and create opportunities. Together they can break down any barriers and achieve great achievements.
Author: Alyona Semko
Photo: Alyona Tishyna, UBWIS CLUB