Scale Her Up: Female business stories and expert tips for business growth and success

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Iona Crawford, founder of Iona Crawford Atelier, a Glasgow-based multidisciplinary design studio that began as a luxury womenswear brand and has evolved into a rich, design-led business spanning fashion, textiles, interiors and art. Nearly 19 years after launching straight out of art school, Iona is still driven by the same core passion: painting, storytelling and expressing ideas through beautiful design.

Iona shares how the business first grew from luxury fashion into printed garments and accessories, with collections sold in Japan, Europe and the US...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Emma Kirk of User Vision, a UX and accessibility consultancy that has been helping organisations create better digital experiences for 26 years. User Vision uses research-led insight to help clients understand real user needs and design services that work for everyone, including people with disabilities. Over the years, the team has worked with more than 350 clients globally, from major brands to public sector organisations, always with a focus on bringing humanity to design and making digital services both inclusive and commercially effective.

Emma expl...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Eve McCurrich, Managing Director of Whiteburn Projects Limited, an award-winning SME house builder based in Edinburgh and building across the southeast of Scotland.

Eve shares what it really means to build homes, not just houses. From the earliest stage of looking at a piece of land, through planning, design, construction and handing over the keys, she and her team are thinking about the lives that will be lived there. She talks passionately about quality, customer experience, placemaking and why home is so much...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Nathalie Agnew, Managing Director of Muckle Media, a founder-led communications group delivering corporate and consumer PR, social media and influencer engagement, with specialist agencies in drinks and hospitality now part of the wider business. Nathalie started Muckle Media from her living room after leaving London and moving back to Scotland, and has since grown it into a 30-person agency group working with major brands and ambitious clients.

Nathalie shares the story behind that journey, from struggling to find the kind of PR role...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Gillian Ogilvie, Managing Director of the Edinburgh practice of Will Rudd Davidson, a consulting civil and structural engineering firm that designs buildings, roads, drainage and the infrastructure that underpins everyday life. Gillian leads a 40+ person team in a still very male-dominated industry – and is determined to change not just the numbers, but the culture.

Gillian talks about diversity, patriarchy and the “imposter” label. She shares how her thinking has evolved from “we need more women in construction” to “we need more diversity in all its forms...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Jill Henry, co-founder of Meander Apparel and co-owner of Tens Sunglasses – two Scottish lifestyle brands inspired by travel, adventure and the outdoors.

Meander makes stylish, versatile outdoor clothing designed to take you from city streets to mountain trails – performance gear you can wear on the bike, on the hills and straight into a café or meeting without feeling like you’re in full technical kit. Tens is a sunglasses brand created by photographers, famous for its warm, photo-filter style lenses that make the world l...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Linda Hunt, founder of Some Solutions, corporate “dropout” and one of the early pioneers of remote accounting services. Linda left a demanding, travel-heavy corporate role in 1998 and built a business that started with outsourced accounting and evolved into two core arms: a done-for-you accounting services division and an educational arm helping service-based business owners fix their relationship with money, pricing and capacity.

Linda works with bookkeepers, accountants and a wide range of service businesses – from online providers to bricks-and-mortar locations like medical spas. She...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Emma Bohan, Managing Director of IMS Heat Pumps, a specialist renewable heating company installing air source, ground source and water source heat pumps, plus solar PV and batteries, from bases in Scotland and Sheffield. Emma and her team help homeowners and small commercial clients move away from gas boilers towards low-carbon, electricity-based systems that can be powered by renewables.

Emma explains, in plain English, how heat pumps work, who they’re right for and why combining a heat pump with solar panels and a...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Susie Cresswell, founder of White Wall Marketing, a Glasgow-based marketing and comms agency specialising in the built environment – think shopping centres, retail parks, office blocks and high-end residential.

Susie shares how she went from a demanding, male-dominated corporate role in property to launching her own agency after realising there was “more to life” than never having time to post a birthday card to her niece. With no savings, a loan from her parents to cover the mortgage and a determination to do great work...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Kerry Black, Director at Firstcall Trade Services, an all-trades contractor based in Edinburgh. Firstcall employs joiners, plumbers, electricians, decorators and more – around 46 operatives plus an office team – providing a one-stop shop for repairs and maintenance for housing associations, councils, insurers and letting agents.

Kerry shares how she joined Firstcall in 2015 as a part-time administrator while studying criminology at university, discovered she loved construction and working with trades, and steadily grew into operations manager and then director. She talks about what hooked her early on...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Rosie Berridge, founder of Accountability Edinburgh – an accounting practice that doesn’t do personal tax returns or year-end accounts. Instead, Rosie and her team act as a virtual finance department for growing businesses: bookkeeping, VAT, payroll, management accounts and in-year support so owners actually understand their numbers and can sleep at night.

Rosie talks about the huge mismatch in expectations between many business owners and traditional accountants. Business owners often think they’re getting an ongoing partner who knows the numbers and can answer...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Deborah Creamer, Managing Director of Optimat, a strategy and innovation consultancy based in Glasgow.

Optimat helps public sector bodies, universities and technology-based SMEs make better decisions about markets, technology and investment. The team all come from technical backgrounds – materials engineering, biotechnology, mechanical engineering, sustainability and environmental science – and they combine that expertise with rigorous research, stakeholder engagement and analysis to answer clients’ most important “what next?” questions.

Deborah explains how Optimat’s work ranges from sector-wide strategies and market opportunity studies to suppo...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Laura Chapman, Managing Director of Chapmans Property Lettings and Management in Edinburgh. Laura runs a high-service, values-led letting and management agency looking after properties almost entirely within the Edinburgh bypass, navigating complex legislation, political change and the emotional realities of being a landlord and a tenant.

Laura shares how she became a landlord in her early twenties while recovering from ME/post-viral fatigue, buying her first flat as a student and renting it out because she couldn’t afford to live there. As a c...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Liz McAreavey, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, whose business journey started not in a boardroom, but in a student flat baking flapjacks. What began as a way to fund her accountancy studies became a deli, then a catering company that grew over 16 years to a £7 million turnover and Scotland’s largest independent caterer – serving everything from racecourses and football stadia to Edinburgh Castle, the National Museum of Scotland and the Royal Yacht Britannia. Liz MacAreavy

Liz shares how recession forced her to st...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Angela Mathis, co-founder and Managing Director of Think Tank Maths, a specialist mathematical-modelling company working at the sharp end of energy transition and sustainable space.

Angela explains, in wonderfully human terms, what her team actually does: building advanced models that help maximise every gust of wind in places like Shetland for hydrogen production, and creating space situational awareness tools that track thousands of satellites zooming around Earth at eight kilometres per second so they don’t smash into each other.

We tal...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Lynne Reeves, Managing Director of Motion Software, an Aberdeen-based company that provides inspection and compliance software to clients in oil and gas, renewables, construction, insurance and even live events and entertainment. If a piece of kit needs a safety certificate – from lifting gear on an offshore platform to rigging and lighting at a major event – there’s a good chance an inspector is using Motion’s software to do it. Lynne Reeves

Lynne shares her career journey from trainer at leisure software company Glad...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Gael Simpson, personal trainer, menopause movement coach and former senior education leader. After more than 20 years as a teacher, head teacher and local authority leader for health and wellbeing, Gael has completely redesigned her career around movement, resilience and workplace wellbeing.

Gael shares her journey from primary teaching to headship, then into a strategic quality improvement role where she led health and wellbeing, physical activity and mental health initiatives across Aberdeen schools – including introducing the Daily Mile and helping create the city’s Mental...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Catriona Smith, founder of Arden Property Management, an Edinburgh-based residential letting and property management agency celebrating its 20th year in business.

Catriona shares how she “accidentally” became a letting agent after careers in primary teaching and a family business, starting out with her own small portfolio and learning the industry on the job. What began as a practical next step has grown into a long-standing, values-led agency that focuses on service, relationships and doing the right thing for both landlords and tenants.

We...

In this powerful episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Becca Pearce, executive coach, former healthcare CEO and author of You Don’t Have To Achieve To Be Loved: Escape the Lies You’ve Been Sold to Design the Life You Want. Becca shares her remarkable journey from leading the implementation of Obamacare in Maryland, to a very public job loss, to a life-threatening brain tumour and major surgery that left her having to learn to walk again – and how all of that ultimately led her to completely redefine success and redesign her life. Becc...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Saj Sharif, CEO and founder of Zen Consultants Limited, a multi-award-winning accountancy practice supporting around 700 clients with everything from self-assessment and VAT to payroll, CIS and management accounts.

Saj shares a powerful, very human business story. Once a stockbroker, she was signed off with ME/chronic fatigue and told she would never work in finance again. While recovering, she helped with her partner’s stonemasonry business, doing the accounts from home. After he passed away she closed the business – but the subcontractors kept com...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Cecilia Righini, founder of Studio Lutalica, a queer, feminist, neurodivergent-led design agency and community interest company. Lutalica creates branding, websites and editorial design for feminist and LGBTQ+ organisations and founders, with a strong focus on lived experience, values and community impact.

Cecilia shares how years of discrimination and microaggressions in traditional workplaces pushed them to create a studio where queer and trans people, and other marginalised identities, can feel safe, respected and fully themselves. They talk about the power of niching deeply – workin...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined again by Margaret Brown, executive leadership coach, organisational development specialist and now author of Culture Pays – a book that has been 20 years in the making.

With over 35 years’ experience working across engineering, energy, IT, construction, professional services and global corporates, Margaret has seen first-hand how much leadership and culture impact performance, profit and people’s lives at work. She shares why she believes we’re facing a global leadership crisis, and how the way leaders show up – in businesses as well as in politics and i...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Katrina Walker, co-founder of A Flat In Town, a central Edinburgh letting agency that has been “letting with heart” for 20 years. Starting as a temp in a small letting business, Katrina fell in love with the variety, the people and the privilege of being trusted with someone’s home – and eventually decided to build her own agency.

Katrina shares how A Flat In Town grew from a simple idea in her mid-twenties into a long-standing business that truly cares for both landlords and tenants...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Gayle Thomson, Employer Engagement Advisor in the Careers and Employability Service at the University of Aberdeen. Gayle works at the heart of the university’s strategy to expand work-based learning, connecting employers with students through internships, part-time roles, volunteering, mentoring and short-term shadowing opportunities.

Gayle explains why real-world experience is so important for students’ employability and confidence – and why it’s a genuine win–win for businesses too. She breaks down the university’s part-time, term-time internship programme: 70 hours over seven weeks, fully funded for...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Liz Carnie, director of PWS(formerly Power Washer Services), a second-generation family business started by her dad over 40 years ago. From one man and a van to a team of 28 covering all of Scotland, PWS now supplies and services power washers, compressors, generators, heaters and more – with a reputation built on backup service, not just sales.

Liz shares how she went from RAF police and policing in England to “helping dad out for a bit” in 1990, only to discover a whole new world of b...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, Dr Brtenda Hector is joined by Kim Woolner, an independent HR consultant, founder of Holding Space, certified menopause coach and part-time team member at the Russell Anderson Foundation in Aberdeen. With more than 25 years in HR across energy, construction and other male-dominated industries, Kim brings a powerful mix of professional expertise and lived experience to the conversation.

Kim talks about juggling multiple roles – HR consultancy, wellbeing work, a charitable foundation, board positions and professional bodies – while navigating menopause and protecting her own energy. She shares why her mo...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Paula Paterson, Founder and Solutions Director at FidesOak, a consultancy specialising in organisational cultural transformation in high-hazard industries. Paula explains how FidesOak helps leaders build high-performing teams that act like a “high-performing virus” inside an organisation – spreading better habits, psychological safety and performance from the inside out. Paula Paterson Edited

We talk about measuring culture rather than guessing, why diagnostics matter more than scattergun initiatives, and how FidesOak’s habits framework turns good intentions into repeatable, sustainable behaviour. Paula shares the idea of cultural...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Fiona Duguid, co-founder of Indigo Seven Ventures, Chief Information Officer at Aurora Energy Services, and the portfolio lead for Expo Design – a business creating sustainable exhibition and display solutions using engineered fibreboard made from recycled cardboard. Fiona describes how Indigo Seven Ventures invests with a focus on sustainability and “doing good in the world,” while she splits her time between fast-growth energy services and a greener alternative to traditional MDF exhibition builds. 

Fiona’s career path is anything but linear. She started in medicine, switch...

In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneurs Show, I’m joined by Iona Foubister, Director and Building Surveyor at FG Burnett, a long-established firm of chartered surveyors and commercial property consultants based in Aberdeen. Iona lifts the lid on what FG Burnett actually does – from those “For Sale” and “To Let” boards you see around town, to building surveys, schedules of condition, property management, valuations and rating advice. 

If you’ve never leased or bought commercial space before, this conversation is a must-listen. Iona explains why taking professional advice before you sign a lease or purchase agreement...

On this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Alana Innes, founder of Rethink Accountancy – a fully digital, remote-first accountancy practice that was paperless and cloud-based long before it became the norm. After 20 years in traditional firms and being told she had to be in the office, Alana walked away from corporate life to design a business that fits the way she wants to live and work. 

What started as “just enough for travel beer tokens” has grown into a team of around 18, supporting SMEs and e-commerce brands all over the UK with bookkeepi...

In this episode of Scale Her Up, Brenda Hector sits down with Mary Smith, founder of Relocation Scotland, who has spent 30 years helping individuals and families relocate to Scotland and call it home. From housing and schools to bank accounts and culture shock, Mary and her team support people through every step of a global move. 

Mary shares how her own experiences living abroad in Zambia, South Africa, Australia and Singapore led her to spot a gap in support for expats and ultimately build a relocation business in Aberdeen. She explains the difference between working for landlords v...

In this powerful episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneurs Show, I’m joined by Marion McLaughlin, founder of Aurora – an autistic-led business that supports organisations to better understand and work with autistic and neurodivergent people. After years in the third sector delivering “womb to tomb” services for autistic people, Marion hit burnout trying to juggle passion with an unsustainable workload. Starting a business was never on their to-do list – yet Aurora has become the most aligned, impactful way for them to use their lived and professional experience. 

Marion is autistic, non-binary and disabled, and brings a deeply intersecti...

Patricia Noel Drain, founder of Patricia Drain & Associates, author of 14 books, former teacher and executive recruiter turned mentor for women 50+. Patricia helps female entrepreneurs over 50 work less and make more—doing what they love. We talk reinvention, building saleable businesses with systems (she created 27 to step out of day-to-day), and designing life around freedom, not busyness. She shares the health scare that forced a reset, the power of digital productsand high-ticket offers, and why women must give themselves permission to earn well. Expect practical prompts to find your zone of genius, say no to misfit work, and—above all—put yoursel...

Liz Clayton-Jones, founder of Beehive Performance, advanced strengths coach and former corporate leader. Liz helps science, research and manufacturing teams become truly high-performing by putting people at the heart of every success. She shares her leap from 31 years in corporate to building a business from the heart (not just the head), why she once walked away from a signed contract that wasn’t a values fit, and how an experimentation mindset (“you can’t fail an experiment—you only get unexpected outcomes”) unlocks progress in life and work. We dig into inclusive teams (including neurodiversity), strengths-based leadership, and practical ways to suppor...

Suz Bird, founder of Bird & Emmy, is a social media strategist working with SMEs across Scotland and the UK. She breaks down how to ditch “post for the algorithm” thinking, build a simple strategy that serves your business goals, and stay sane as a solo founder and single parent. We talk retainer vs project vs training models, why food-and-drink brands spark creative scrappiness, and how to use testimonials, co-mentors and tiny environmental shifts to quiet the inner critic. Suz shares her start-up story (redundancy, separation, first clients from community work), her love–hate with social media, practical networking habits, and pl...

Guest: Sophy Green, Chief Executive of Instant Neighbour, a 40-year Aberdeen charity and social enterprise. Sophy lifts the lid on balancing compassion with commercial discipline: running a food bank and the Giving Tree appeal, generating 85–90% of income through shops, an online store, joinery and carpet services, and delivering council contracts. We talk board governance (“nose in, hands off”), rising demand through the cost-of-living crisis, funding realities, and the tough calls—closing sites, restructuring, and still protecting frontline services. Sophy shares how she future-proofed with e-commerce, avoids “shiny object” projects by staying close to mission, and why leaders must chHead & Heart Leaders...

Victoria Vyalikova, founder of Brand House, a digital marketing agency serving B2B and professional services from Aberdeen to international markets. We talk about building a specialist-first team, the associate model, and why honesty and transparency are the ultimate growth levers. Victoria shares her journey from Big Four marketing to launching during downturns, navigating COVID, and treating AI as a productivity booster—not a replacement for human judgment. We dig into people-pleasing, perfectionism, pricing fairly when AI speeds work up, and the real “juggle vs. balance” of a founder’s life. 

In this episode:

Welcome back to a very special episode of Scale Her Up! After 3 years of podcasts, we’ve officially hit the 100th episode. To celebrate that milestone today, we have Dr. Brenda Hector herself on the podcast. Not only is she the regular host of ScaleHerUp, she's a business development coach with ActionCoach, dedicated to helping business owners grow their business and achieve their dream. Today though, she’ll be in the hot seat, and we'll get a glimpse into her motivations and experiences. We will reflect on the last 100 episodes, the impact it has had for her, and talk abou...

In this Scale HER Up episode, coach and trainer Claire Standen (Embodiment UK) explains how to move beyond Mental Health First Aid into embodied, trauma-informed leadership. We discuss reading behaviour as communication, nervous-system tools for teams, and the realities of leaping from employment to entrepreneurship as a single mum. Includes practical steps for culture change and performance.

Chapters:

Book a comp...

Suann shares why she left employment to create a slower, higher-care model; how small, human touches (yes, a free massage chair!) become talking points; and why most people who take the leap are more likely to succeed than fail

The 5 Vs are Vibe, Velcro, Voyage, Visibility and Visceral. Listen to find out what each one represents.

Book a free introductory session with Dr Brenda Hector https://bit.ly/brencares