STYLISA FoundHers Notes: Who Gets to Build the North?

There has been a great deal of discussion about the future of the North and what greater investment, decision-making and devolution could mean for our region. Those conversations matter. But they also present an opportunity to ask a broader question. If we are serious about creating a stronger regional economy, who gets to build it? In this FoundHers Notes, I explore why supporting more women to create, scale and lead businesses should be central to that conversation.

The future of the North will be shaped by the conversations we choose to have. Wambam Photography

Who gets to build the North?

If we are serious about creating a stronger regional economy, we have to think beyond infrastructure, transport and investment. We also need to think about the people who will create the businesses, generate jobs, solve problems and shape the future of our communities. Economic growth is ultimately about people. For me, that raises another question.

How do we ensure more women are creating, scaling and leading businesses in the North?

This isn’t simply a question about equality. It’s a question about opportunity. Every successful business creates more than revenue. It creates employment, develops skills, strengthens supply chains and contributes to the wider economy. If we want the North to thrive, we need more people with the confidence, capability and opportunity to build businesses that last.

Over the past year, through STYLISA FoundHers, I’ve had the privilege of speaking with founders, investors, CEOs and board leaders from a wide range of industries. Every conversation has been different, yet many of the themes have been remarkably consistent. Access to funding. Access to networks. Access to decision-makers. Access to opportunities that are often taken for granted by others.

Those conversations have reinforced something I have believed for a long time. Talent is everywhere. Opportunity is not.

We often talk about encouraging more women into entrepreneurship, but perhaps we should be asking bigger questions. What does a girl growing up in Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds or Newcastle need to see in order to believe that building a business is a realistic path for her? What support exists once that business has been launched? Who is opening doors when she wants to scale? Who is investing? Who is championing her when she isn’t in the room?

These aren’t questions for government alone. They belong to investors, universities, schools, established founders, employers, business organisations and all of us who care about the future of our regional economies. If we genuinely believe in inclusive growth, then creating more women founders cannot sit on the margins of the conversation. It has to become part of the strategy.

Perhaps this is also an opportunity to think differently about how we measure success. Is success simply attracting more investment into the North? Or is it ensuring that investment reaches the widest possible pool of talent? Is it creating more businesses? Or creating more businesses that survive, scale and go on to employ others?

I don’t claim to have all of the answers. In fact, I suspect the answers already exist within the experiences of the women who are building businesses every day. We simply need to listen more carefully.

That is one of the reasons I created STYLISA FoundHers. Not to celebrate entrepreneurship for entrepreneurship’s sake, but to create a space where lived experience, practical insight and honest conversations can help shape what comes next.

Because the future of the North won’t be determined solely by the decisions made in government. It will also be determined by the people who choose to build, invest, lead and create here. The question is, are we doing enough to ensure that everyone with the potential to do so has the opportunity?

Discover STYLISA FoundHers

Connect with me on LinkedIn