Empower me! Inspiring Women in Business

On International Women’s Day, linking with the Unfinished Business national exhibition, Worcestershire Libraries are celebrating the contribution of women in business and aiming to inspire, empower and support all those thinking about starting up or challenging the status quo. Join us for an inspirational panel talk featuring four incredibly talented women, chaired by the fantastic Angela Podmore.

Anja Potze is the Dutch powerhouse behind Anja Potze Fine Jewellery, an award-winning independent jeweller. Anja takes great pride in being one of Worcester's independent traders and has immersed herself in all things Worcester. Anja won the 'Heart of Gold' award in the national Small Business Awards in 2017, for her ongoing commitment and generosity to Worcester and Worcestershire causes.

Mel Larsen is The Dream Project Coach helping people to turn their vision into big real-life results. Over 20 years of successful business coaching, consulting and public speaking experience has taken her across the globe including Russia, the Caribbean, Australia, Africa, Central Asia and Europe. Mel loves a challenge: recently she did a Facebook Live every day for a whole year. She’s also walked on hot coals with Tony Robbins and was the founder of 3 community-led festivals in Streatham, South London, a legacy which continues to thrive.

Nicola Whiting MBE is co-owner of Titania Group. She is also an Amazon best-selling author and an internationally recognised speaker and writer. She is passionate about business growth, is a board member for Local Enterprise Partnerships and an award-winning business mentor for both local and national business accelerators. Nicola advocates for Diversity in all forms believing it will lead to broader and ultimately better solutions to our country’s most pressing issues. Nicola was awarded an MBE in 2020 for services to International Trade and Diversity.

Suki Pantal is an ardent lover of Indian food and spices and cooks everything from scratch. She has her own Suki’s Curries and Spices page on social media that talks about her family recipes and helps other curry lovers discover Indian food, recipes, tips and learn about authentic spices and ingredients. A marketing professional by occupation, she is the marketing manager for the Mount Pleasant hotel in Great Malvern and all her free time is devoted to cooking for her family and friends! She says, “Nothing gives me more pleasure than feeding my loved ones with Indian food recipes passed down the generations”.

Angela Podmore, founded Kinetic Communications Ltd back in 2004 to both dispel the myth that public relations isn’t measurable and to guarantee decent businesses results for which she developed her unique ‘DNA’ model which is protected intellectual property. Having started life at Saatchi & Saatchi, she’s acted on behalf of titans such as Cadbury, P&O, Ideal-Standard and Land Securities but her passion is helping the ‘Davids not the Goliaths’.She says it’s tough running a decent business and she won’t rest until each one gets the trust it deserves by helping them stand out across the world and giving each a communications 'road map' with all the tools they need to communicate consistently.