Our 2025 Modern Woman Show is shaping up to be the best yet. This year will be;
Bigger . Brighter . Bolder
With some surprises thrown in for good measure !
We know, because you have told us, that bringing women together across multiple industries, inspires and educates. We are committed to bringing you interesting and challenging topics discussed in an open and supportive forum in the spirit of Modern Woman.
We have arranged the 2025 Show into two parts. The extended day, starting with breakfast at 9am, through to the various speaker sessions and workshops until 5pm. It wouldn't be a Modern Woman Show without the music and we won't disappoint. As the speakers and workshop leaders end their sessions we switch to canapés, drinks and some live music for a more relaxed 'After Dark' networking opportunity, finishing The Show at 8pm.
So, wouldn’t it be great to be part of a thriving community that has your back and attend a very different kind of business conference, a show that gets you?
Overall Themes
We are currently working on our 2025 Show content and will be confirming more details in the coming weeks. However, because there are recurrent themes that are very important to us we will look to cover topics and questions such as:
- Can we really have it all?
- Getting to and staying in the C-Suite
- Growing your business
- Finding and retaining talent
- Loneliness and confidence
- How to say No....
Industry Focus
- Sustainability and ESG
- Finance and Investment
- Design and Property
- Construction and the built environment
- Automotive and EV
- Succeeding as an Independent artist
Agenda
DURING THE DAY
- Thought provoking panel discussions
- Inspiring Fireside Q&As
- Powerful networking
- Dedicated industry focused sessions
- Multiple workshops
- Speed Mentoring
- Legal Clinic
AFTER DARK
- Relaxed Networking in a beautiful setting
- Canapés
- Drinks
- Live artists
- DJ’s in collaboration with Mi Soul Radio
- Available to those not attending the day sessions
Allison English
Co-founder and Co-CEO, Aéto Strategy
I’m an American by way of Asia who moved to the UK in 2017. My background is in graphic design and printing, and I found my way into Property/Real Estate by happenstance while looking for a career change where I could make a real impact on people’s lives. In 2018 I joined Leesman, the world’s leading independent assessor of workplace experience, as Client Services Director and was promoted to Deputy CEO in 2020. In July 2024 I left Leesman to co-lead a spin-off organisation, Aéto Strategy, to help clients turn data into insights they can act on to help people in their work. I am passionate about business being a force for good, having led initiatives for Leesman to become B Corp certified in 2022 and part of the Careers After Babies Accreditation programme in 2023. I am also an active member and past board member of the Zonta Club of London, which is part of Zonta International, a global non-profit helping advance the status of women and girls around the world. I am on the CREW UK board, the Careers After Babies Accreditation board, and the Advisory Board for the London Workspace Design Show. I love spending time with my husband and two little ones, catching up with friends and fa
Avril Palmer-Lavery
Founder and Executive Chairman of Constellation Automotive Group
Avril Palmer-Lavery is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Constellation Automotive group, which owns BCA, We Buy Any Car, cinch and Marshall Motor Group amongst many other brands. She has over 35 years of experience in leading businesses in the automotive and industrial sector. Avril is also currently the Non-Executive Chairman for ZIGUP PLC.
Emma Kane
Head of EMEA and Deputy Group CEO, SEC Newgate
Emma Kane is a strategic communications expert with over three decades of experience in building brands and reputation management. A trusted adviser to CEOs and Chairs of leading organisations, Emma specialises in helping clients communicate effectively across diverse stakeholder groups. She is recognised as one of the most influential communications professionals in Britain. Emma spent 18 years building Redleaf Communications, a corporate and financial communications firm, before becoming CEO of the group that acquired her business in 2018. She is now the Head of EMEA and Deputy Group CEO of SEC Newgate, the world’s 20th largest communications group, as well as CEO of its UK business. In addition to her corporate role, Emma is deeply involved in philanthropic work, currently serving as Deputy Chair of the Elton John AIDS Foundation and Deputy Chair of the Green Finance Institute. She was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in 2017 for her contributions to the sector.
Gina Miller
Dynamic businesswoman, activist and campaigner
Gina Miller is a dynamic businesswoman, activist and campaigner. Gina began her career in Financial Services back to 1996 when she started a specialist financial services marketing agency, SWAY going on to co-found SCM Direct in 2009. In June 2020, Gina launched MoneyShe dedicated to empowering women and educating them on topics such as investing and pensions, so they are better able to look after their financial health. Gina’s campaigning has led to successful campaigning on issues as diverse as modern-day slavery, domestic violence, special needs, inequality, social justice, and online abuse. Her work in the charity sector over the last 20 years has helped improve governance, sustainability and safeguarding. Gina became a household name in 2017 after taking the UK Government to the Supreme Court and again in 2019, securing historic constitutional victories and prohibiting two UK Prime Ministers putting themselves above the law. Both legal challenges were to protect Parliament’s sovereignty, and she continues to work on preserving constitutional, democratic and civil rights.
Helen Pattinson
Co-Founder, Montezuma’s Chocolates
Helen and her husband Simon founded the ethical chocolate business, Montezuma’s Chocolates after travelling around South America during a break from their legal careers. The fledgling ideas for Montezuma’s grew from a lifestyle business with clearly defined trading fairly principles into Britain’s most creative chocolate maker and retailer. Opening its doors as a retailer in 2000, Montezuma’s is now a multi-channel business across the UK and internationally, making all of its own products in its chocolate factory near Chichester. Helen and Simon sold a majority of the business to investors in 2018 and after a few years working alongside private equity they are no longer involved with the business. They now invest in growing food businesses and enjoy mentoring entrepreneurs at all stages of their journey, as well as sitting on the Board of a handful of interesting, creative and ethical businesses. Helen is also a trustee of the incredible children’s charity Children on the Edge for whom, she has helped to raise over £250k for their work with marginalised children around the world.
Jordan Brompton
Co Founder, myenergi
Business leader, tech entrepreneur and sustainable investor, Jordan Brompton is the co-founder of myenergi – a global leader in eco-smart home energy technology. Alongside forging fundamental business relationships, Jordan is responsible for driving the day-to-day corporate strategy and fuelling long-term international expansion. With the ambition of leaving the planet in a better place than she found it, Jordan has been presented with a number of prestigious awards and accolades for her pioneering work. Alongside being crowned Great British Entrepreneur of the Year, she was named in the TE100, the Stonehage Fleming XV, the Top 10 Women in Energy and took home gold as EY Entrepreneur of the Year (North). Never one to sit still, she became a published author with her debut book ‘Sparki and the journey to Earth’, which aims to educate children about the importance of working towards a greener future
Kia Commodore
Founder, Pennies to Pounds
Kia is the founder of the highly successful ‘Pennies to Pounds’ platform - a financial literacy hub created to empower young people by enabling them to shape their future with complete financial knowledge. In August 2022, Kia starred in the Channel 4 series, 'Money On My Mind' in partnership with Barclays and has appeared live on BBC Newsnight and Scotland Tonight to discuss the ‘cost of living’ crisis. Kia has also hosted Legal & General's award-winning podcast, 'A Little Bit Richer', as well as co-hosted the BBC 5 Live podcast, 'Your Work, Your Money', aimed to help people navigate their finances through lockdown. Her work has also been featured in The Guardian, The Sun, Cosmopolitan and The Huffington Post and she has worked with a number of globally recognised brands to create easy-to-understand financial content.
Alfred Biehler
Head of Innovation, Emerging Themes and Technology team Google Cloud CE EMEA
Creative and creator. Entrepreneur. Technologist. Futurist. Evangelist. Architect. Enthusiast. Innervator. Googler. Roboteer. Cyclist. SUPper. Musician. Human. and Free.
Angie Greaves
Drive Time Presenter, Smooth Radio
Angie's Drive Time show “The Smooth Drive Home” on Smooth Radio can be heard across the UK every weekday from 4pm to 7pm. You can also hear her on Sunday morning, “Smooth Sunday Mornings” where she reads out your Love Letters. If you’re travelling on British Airways long haul check out her Soul Show. Angie loves being in the radio studio and even has a mini studio at home, radio really is the best medium and the studio is her second home. When she hit the big 5-0 she wasn’t sure what to expect, but Angie knew how she felt – fabulous. She found she had energy that she'd never experienced before, she wanted to take care of her body, mind and spirit in a way she hadn’t thought of before and almost felt naughty because instead of slowing down to do what women in their 50s did 10 or even 5 years ago, she wanted to travel, work out, set a goal to get into a bikini, and she was listening to the same music as her girls; Stormzy, Beyonce, Drake, Cardi B, but she still loves her classic Soul, R’n’B, Reggae and Soca etc.
Anna Allerton
Founder of Allerton Coaching
Anna Allerton is the founder of Allerton Coaching and a leading Business Consultant and Executive Coach. With multi-sector experience, Anna specialises in workplace transformation, culture change and retention of female talent in the workplace, with a specialism in perimenopause and menopause. Through Allerton Consulting, Anna is helping women thrive in their careers during their menopause and is driving institutional workplace change by helping break down stigmas and create lasting change by showing employers how to build a culture of support and empowerment for women whilst also teaching them how to attract, retain and get the most out of female talent within their industry.
Anna Whitehouse
Founder at Mother Pukka
Anna Whitehouse is the trailblazing Sunday Times best-selling author of Parenting the Sh*t out of Life, Where’s My Happy Ending?, and Underbelly, mother and campaigner behind the Flex Appeal movement (flexible working for all), the premise of which helped form the powerhouse Flex For All Campaign recently addressed in parliament. Anna is open, honest, well informed and forever hilarious in her voice of Mother Pukka which is a platform created to share the trials and tribulations of parenthood and beyond. Anna topped the Apple Kids and Family Podcast chart at No.1 with Dirty Mother Pukka and her weekly Sunday show on Heart radio has pulled in thousands of new listeners.
Brigette Bard
CEO and Founder, BioSURE Global
Brigette Bard is CEO and founder of BioSURE Global – the UK company that develops, manufactures and distributes world-class medical devices in rapidly growing global markets, with a unique insight into self-testing. Her legacy and unique insight to this rapidly global market is due to bringing the world’s first blood-based HIV self-test to market in 2015. It stems from her belief that self-testing will revolutionise disease diagnosis in our lifetime. She says: “Home pregnancy testing has been available for the past 30 years and you literally cannot imagine as a woman having to take time off work, go to a clinic, answer personal questions and wait several days to find out if she is pregnant! I honestly think home ‘screening’ for all diseases will become the norm and we even have home hormone, heart disease and cancer marker tests available now.”
Charlene Hunter MBE
Founder and CEO, Coding Black Females
Charlene has a background in software development and technical architecture. She is the founder and CEO of Coding Black Females, a non-profit organisation that inspires, provides opportunities, and showcases the talents of black women in tech. Charlene is also involved in the development and growth of a range of tech communities and as an advisor within education and technology. Charlene is passionate about increasing diversity in tech.
Dr Lucy Davey
Medical Doctor and Champion for Empowerment and Safety for Women
Dr Lucy Davey is a medical doctor (psychiatrist) by background and a champion for the empowerment and safety of women. A regular media commentator on topics relating to women, wellbeing and equality, Dr Lucy has been invited to participate in several innovative projects that seek to improve female representation in typically male dominated sectors, including alternative investments, sustainability, web3 and automotive. Dr Lucy maintains a life-long passion for fast cars and has been involved in several track days with Porsche. As an EV driver herself and mother of two young children, Dr Lucy has personally experienced the challenges of safe charging, both in the UK and when travelling abroad. This led Dr Lucy to mastermind a new campaign in 2024 to drive greater awareness of the risks posed to women at EV charge points. As the number of female EV drivers increases, Dr Lucy remains committed to ensuring that the needs of women are properly considered in the future development of a global EV network.
Emma Kane
Head of EMEA and Deputy Group CEO, SEC Newgate
Emma Kane is a strategic communications expert with over three decades of experience in building brands and reputation management. A trusted adviser to CEOs and Chairs of leading organisations, Emma specialises in helping clients communicate effectively across diverse stakeholder groups. She is recognised as one of the most influential communications professionals in Britain. Emma spent 18 years building Redleaf Communications, a corporate and financial communications firm, before becoming CEO of the group that acquired her business in 2018. She is now the Head of EMEA and Deputy Group CEO of SEC Newgate, the world’s 20th largest communications group, as well as CEO of its UK business. In addition to her corporate role, Emma is deeply involved in philanthropic work, currently serving as Deputy Chair of the Elton John AIDS Foundation and Deputy Chair of the Green Finance Institute. She was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in 2017 for her contributions to the sector.
Emma Wright
Co-Founder and Director, Interparliamentary Forum on Emerging Technologies
Emma is co-founder and Director at the not-for-profit Interparliamentary Forum on Emerging Technologies – which has built a global network of legislators considering the regulation of AI and other emerging technologies in countries from all over the world. She sits on the Unesco Women4EthicalAI forum of global experts on AI and is working with UNESCO through IFET’s legislator network on the global implementation of its Recommendation on Ethics in AI. She was listed by Computer Weekly as one of the Top 20 Most Influential Women in Tech for the last two years and won the Cog-X Global Impact award for 2023 for her work at OFET on global AI regulation.
Erin Baker
Award winning motoring journalist
Erin has been a motoring journalist since 2003. She was the Motoring Editor at the Telegraph Media Group for four years, becoming Managing Director of Motoring at the Telegraph, a hybrid role that brought together various editorial and commercial aspects. In 2017, Erin was appointed as Editorial Director at Auto Trader. She is a strong advocate of content which de-mystifies the car world, by replacing insider jargon with plain English. She believes in a gender-neutral car industry, and has found her spiritual home at Auto Trader. Alongside her career at Auto Trader, Erin writes a monthly column for Vogue, called Vogue on the Road, writes about cars for Marie Claire, and judges the Marie Claire Sustainability awards, the Reuters DRIVE awards, and the Top Women in EV awards. She also consults for Goodwood and is the co-host of She's Electric, a national roadshow introducing women to electric cars. Erin has won Consumer Journalist of the Year in the Newspress Awards, and Campaigning Journalist of the Year, Editor of the Year and Journalist of the Year at the Guild of Motoring Writers awards. She regularly appears on TV and radio to talk cars.
Florence Keelson-Anfu
Senior Manager, Private Markets at the London Stock Exchange plc.
Florence is the Senior Manager, Private Markets at the London Stock Exchange plc. She supports high growth companies to achieve their fundraising goals with Floww and to access the right capital throughout their growth journey and across the funding continuum. Prior to this role, Florence worked as a Programme Manager on large scale transformation programmes in consulting and industry.
Gordon Mac
Founder at Mi-Soul Radio
Gordon Mac, the Godfather of Dance Music, is an innovative and successful entrepreneur. He achieved the remarkable feat of legalizing a pirate radio station in the UK, becoming the youngest ever Managing Director of a radio station (1985-1997), and gaining renown for creating Kiss FM, Britain’s first dance music station. Gordon played a pivotal role in establishing the Kiss network, which became essential to London’s music scene. The franchise and the introduction of Kiss TV expanded the brand's reach to a national audience. By the time Gordon left, the company was valued at £40m. In 1998, The Radio Academy recognized Gordon's Outstanding Contribution to Music Radio with the prestigious John Peel Award. He joined the ranks of other esteemed recipients like Kenny Everett, Richard Park, Chris Tarrant, and John Peel. In 2011, Mi-Soul Radio was born. With the core team from Kiss FM, Gordon curated an environment where people who share a love for soulful music can listen, connect, and interact with an A-List team of DJs who respect the past, present, and future of our music. Mi-Soul went live on DAB in July 2015, and its audience continues to grow daily.
Helen Chorley
Angel Investor on Sky TV's 'Property Elevator'
Angel Investor on SkyTV’s ‘Property Elevator’ Helen Chorley is the original female “Dragon” on SkyTV’s “Property Elevator” show, the Dragon’s Den of property investing. Once an investment banker with JPMorgan she is now a friendly face in the world of real estate, co-founding the Property Sisters UK community, and champions female visibility as a judge for many industry awards including the Women In Construction Awards. She also writes for Property Investor Magazine and acts as Board Executive for a key handful of investment companies and start ups.
Jade Richardson
A&R, Warner Records UK
Passionate about music, artists, A&R, legacy, culture and serving my community. Jade is an experienced individual with over 20 plus years in the music industry, working across global projects with brands, television, fashion, arts, radio, events, community, publishing, management and records. “Trust your heart and success will come to you”. Oprah Winfrey.
Kwame Kwaten
Founder and MD of Ferocious Talent
Over his 30+ year career in the music industry, Kwame has been a musician, manager, producer, consultant and A&R. His own writing and production credits include work for Jay Z, Shola Ama, Mick Jagger, Tom Jones and Seal to name a few. The band, D-Influence (which Kwame was a member of), signed to Atlantic Records, accomplished many amazing moments such as supporting Michael Jackson, Prince and James Brown on tour. His A&R and management work over the years has seen him discover Shola Ama, Laura Mvula and Rumer resulting in millions of records sales and multiple award wins and nominations. Kwame is also currently a Trustee at The Brits Trust, Vice-Chair of the UK’s Music Managers Forum, Trustee of the MOBO Charity and Co-Chair of the BRITS Diversity Committee. He is also Co-Director of a social enterprise company, Cre8ing Vision, with Andrea Euell and Nicola Charles.This company houses The Ultimate Seminar, Ultimate Live, The Ultimate Circle, The A&R Initiative Focus Groups and The MBOL Show. Founder and owner of Ferocious Talent Ltd Kwame Kwame runs everything from top to bottom.
Lizzie Pickering
Speaker, Grief Investigator, Film and Podcast Producer.
Lizzie is a Speaker, Grief Investigator, Film and Podcast producer. She offers Grief Guidance to organisations and individuals, educating people about grief and helping them back to life and work following major loss, from bereavement, to diagnosis, divorce and workplace change. Her clients are both UK based and global, from hospitals and schools to advertising agencies, law firms and investment banks. Since the death of her eldest son Harry 23 years ago, Lizzie has become passionate about changing the landscape for people who have to face life and work when they are living with grief. Her firm belief is that if grief is faced and worked through gradually, if people are well supported, there is a rich seam of energy to be found from not only surviving it but living well. Lizzie’s book When Grief Equals Love, was published in May 2023 and is available from book shops, Amazon and Audible: When Grief Equals Love
Lola Idris
Employment Solicitor, Jones Chase
Lola is an enthusiastic, committed, and personable employment solicitor. Lola thoroughly enjoys being able to assist employers and employees alike with work-related issues and is devoted to finding the best solution for her clients. Lola currently works at Jones Chase, an employment law boutique firm. In terms of hobbies, Lola enjoys public speaking, yoga, exercising, travelling, mentoring and reading. She has previously co-hosted a radio show, podcast and mentors various law students participating in the Nottingham Trent Alumni Community, Nottingham Trent University Black Leadership, Non-Russel Group Lawyers and Social Mobility Foundation mentoring programs. Lola also has experience as an appropriate adult, this position focused more on criminal law and Lola assisted by safeguarding the legal rights and general welfare of children and vulnerable adults suspected of a criminal offence, by ensuring they were questioned and treated in a fair and ethical manner by the police. Lola has created a blog, YouTube channel and co-founded a black empowerment initiative focused on changing mindsets, creating a greater sense of community and empowering more black people to provoke change.
Lorraine Thomas
Award winning Property Developer.
Lorraine Thomas is an award-winning property developer, mentor, and socially conscious landlord. She is an outspoken advocate who believes in property with purpose and people before profit. A giant thinking, risk-taking visionary who’s shaking up the sector and is a sought-after voice. Lorraine learnt the hard way about successful property development/investment and now mentors budding developers through that journey. Taking a leap from her career in business development for the legal sector, in 2016 call it serendipity, Lorraine landed a part-time role procuring rental properties for disadvantaged young adults, then started buying and developing properties, renting to the high-risk and vulnerable tenant sector. She’s on a mission to create a new breed of socially conscious landlord who combines commercial savviness with a social conscience. Now an accomplished and successful developer driving projects ground up ranging from £200k to several million. Her story is real. She's gone from a humble £62.50 pw as a Carer for her dad to a substantial and growing portfolio.
Lucy Aylen
Founder, Never Fully Dressed
Lucy Aylen, British designer and face behind Never Fully Dressed founded the brand in her parents’ attic in 2009 where she customised clothing to sell at London’s boutique markets, Spitalfields and Portobello. Following in the footsteps of her market trading parents, Lucy’s strong work ethic was engrained in her from a young age. Never Fully Dressed’s first brick and mortar store opened in 2014 in the brands native Buckhurst Hill Essex with a brand new USA Flagship store in New York for 2023
Lynne Parker
Founder, Funny Women
Lynne Parker founded Funny Women in 2002 in response to a comedy promoter who told her that 'women aren't funny'. She went on to create the Funny Women Awards and, 20 years on, the rest is history. Funny Women is now an acclaimed not for profit community for women to build selfconfidence and develop their own distinctive voice. Lynne describes it as her ‘life’s work’ providing a safe, diverse, creative platform that empowers women to perform, write and use humour in business and everyday life. In addition to producing comedy shows and running events, Lynne is a renowned performance coach encouraging people in business and public life to 'Stand Up to Stand Out'. Borrowing techniques from the world of stand-up comedy, Lynne has developed workshops and runs events under the HERlarious brand to improve self-confidence, support health and wellbeing, develop presentation skills and build teams. Her work empowers many women both professionally and personally to have a voice. Lynne brings her two worlds together in her podcast, HOW TO HAVE FUN AT WORK with guests from both comedy and business.
Maria Grazia Zedda
Senior Equality, Diversity and Inclusion manager, HS2
Maria was a Top 100 Disability Influencer in 2022 and 2019 for the public sector and her work has been recognised for many years from being a disabled entrepreneur, trainer and speaker. She is responsible for delivering equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) management for the workforce and communities along the route of High Speed Two, leading the organisation to achieving Platinum Status on Clear Assured EDI Accreditation. She advises on strategic planning and delivering EDI goals, developing internal and external partnerships, training frontline staff, senior managers and executives and speaking at large events. She’s also the author of a novel on disability and intersectional inclusion published in her native Italy.
Melissa Snover
CEO and Founder at Nourish3d and Script3d
Melissa Snover is an award-winning entrepreneur and visionary in the world of food technology and 3D printing. She is passionate about developing innovations which offer solutions to her customers, challenge her competitors, and disrupt current market offerings. She is currently the founder and CEO of Rem3dy Health which pioneers personalised solutions across preventative and curative health under the brands Nourished (Personalised Nutrition) and Scripted (Personalised Medicine). In 2019 Melissa raised the highest ever female founder seed round in UK history for Rem3dy and is an ambassador for women’s equal access to finance. She is an avid supporter and mentor; supporting young people of all backgrounds to begin studying in STEM fields and is a passionate and proactive advocate for women in business.
Michaela Wain
BBC The Apprentice finalist, Woman in Construction, Owner of Design and Build UK
Michaela Wain is an established business woman within the construction industry. She is the managing director of Design and Build UK, Vantage Utility Connections Holdings, Property Ninjas and Framework Marketing. Michaela was a finalist on BBC The Apprentice and later secured the investment after her exposure on the show. She is passionate about ED and I in construction. She started the first ever Women in Construction awards and has spoken about this topic at the House of Lords, she recently launched the women in construction hub allowing women to network and inspiring one and another. Michaela wants to see a change in the construction industry. To see more money spent in the North, having inclusive environments for all to thrive in and allow SMEs and micro businesses to win more contracts.
Niki Wilburn Shaw
Partner. Sports and Private Advisory (Family) Law, Brandsmiths
As a pioneering female partner in male dominated sectors (legal and sport), Niki has become renowned for being a disruptor who champions women, both in sport and in the workplace. Her stellar reputation and experience have led to Niki appearing on numerous media outlets, discussing current matters and changes to the law, which effect sports personalities in particular. The Sunday Times, talkSport, Law in Sport, Behind Sport, Off the Pitch, Lexis Nexis, Talk TV, Family Law Journal, the Manchester Evening News and the Sports Management podcast are just a few of the outlets which have been lucky enough to host Niki as a guest! Niki has a particular interest in sport due to her love and involvement in boxing and so it makes sense that she also sits on the board for Women in Boxing. Thanks to her experience across the sporting and legal sectors, the demand for her expertise is ever-increasing, with elite athletes constantly calling on her to share her in-depth knowledge of their very particular, and often highly scrutinised, lives.
Penny Weatherup
People Director, Volkswagen Group UK
Penny joined Volkswagen Group UK’s board in 2016 when she was appointed Group People Director, following a number or promotions within the organisation. Penny joined VWG in 2007 on a temporary, part-time contract as HR Business Partner, and was subsequently promoted to the role of HR Operations Manager in 2011. In these roles she grasped the opportunity to understand the mechanics of the business, and gained valuable experience in deploying change initiatives. Before moving to VWG, Penny worked in human resources roles at a UK intellectual property firm, and in commercial sales and marketing roles at the global insurance firm, AXA. Volkswagen Group (comprising the Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Audi, SEAT, CUPRA and ŠKODA brands) is the largest automotive sales company in the UK, with a passenger car market share of over 20 per cent. It directly employs around 900 people in Milton Keynes, with a further 25,000 roles in its associated businesses which include retail networks, logistics, customer services and financial services. With an annual net turnover of over £10bn, Volkswagen Group is a significant contributor to the UK.
Rachel Carrell
Founder and CEO, Koru Kids
Rachel Carrell is the founder and CEO of Koru Kids, a startup building the world’s best childcare service. Originally from New Zealand, Rachel holds a masters and doctorate from the University of Oxford, where she was a Rhodes Scholar. She has received numerous awards including ‘Inspirational Mother’ and ‘Best Businesswoman in Tech’, and was elected a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. Rachel is also the mother of three kids aged 8, 5 and 0. She was CEO of a healthcare company when she had her first baby, experienced first hand how difficult and expensive it was to arrange childcare, and decided to found Koru Kids.
Rt Hon Caroline Nokes MP
Chair of the Women and Equalities Select Committee in Parliament
Caroline is the Member of Parliament for Romsey and Southampton North and the current Chair of the Women and Equalities Select Committee in Parliament. Since her election in 2010 she has served as a Minister in the Department for Work and Pensions, the Cabinet Office and was Minister of State for Immigration in Theresa May’s Cabinet. Immediately prior to becoming an MP she was the Chief Executive of an animal welfare charity. Caroline is currently the co-chair of the APPG for Muslim Women, Vice Chair of “Show Racism the Red Card”. As Chair of the Select Committee Caroline has headed up inquiries into the gendered economic impact of covid, menopause in the work place and reform of the Gender Recognition Act. The current focus of the Committee is on the cultures underpinning misogyny and abuse against women and girls, tackling so called honour based abuse, and discrimination in the UK asylum process.
Sarah Cox-Thornley
Head of Marketing, Volkswagen Passenger Cars UK
Sarah joined the motor industry under unusual circumstances, after being told at a Graduate fair that the “car game was very male dominated industry”. This was like a red rag to a bull and drove Sarah to apply for a place on the BMW Graduate Scheme straight after finishing university. With a degree in Management Science, Business and Economics, her academic background and project management passion has supported her in a variety of roles through her automotive career. After 5 years with the BMW and MINI dealer network, Sarah was approached to join Volkswagen Group and joined the Audi brand where she spent 12 years. During that time, she held various positions including Academy Manager, Area Sales Manager, Retail and Customer Relationship Manager, and National Communications Manager. In May 2020, Sarah began her current role as Head of Marketing for Volkswagen Passenger Cars UK. Here she oversees a team of 30 people, leading all communications, as well as the brand’s digital and customer experience strategies. Sarah is also the sponsor for the Driven Women Employee Network Group for Volkswagen Group UK, as well as an active mentor for women across the business.
Stephen Sacks
Founder of FundingNav & F**k Up Nights
Stephen worked 30 years in the fashion industry and created a brand that was being sold in over 30 countries generating £30 million a year in revenue before being acquired. His furniture business racked up millions of pounds of debt and he had no idea how to dig his way out. Wanting to save others from experiencing what he went through he founded Funding Nav that helps business owners who have more ambition than cash. To date they have provided in excess of £100 million for hundreds of businesses. Stephen is also the author of 2 books Reboot Your Business and The Intelligent Investors Handbook
Susan Freeman
Real Estate Partner, Mishcon de Reya
Susan is a real estate partner at law firm Mishcon de Reya. An experienced real estate lawyer, her in-depth understanding of the property market, the emerging world of tech and her business training as a Sloan Masters MSc (London Business School) graduate, combined with a wide circle of contacts is an effective combination. She is listed in Property Week's Women's Power List, which describes her as "a world-class networker" with "a contact book full of CEOs". In 2021, Susan received an honorary doctorate from the University College of Estate Management (UCEM), in recognition of her contribution to the built environment. She is on the board of Central District Alliance, the Holborn and surrounding area's Business Improvement District and chairs its Property Group and is on the advisory boards of real estate investment company Seaforth Land and of flexible working company Work.Life. She is also an active member of a number of property-related organisations, including Vice Chair of the British Property Federation's Technology and Innovation Group and member of the ULI Europe Technology and Real Estate Product Council.
Xuan Liu
Account Executive, Google Cloud UK&I
Nomad (worked in 4 countries over 3 continents by the age of 30). Polyglot (Chinese, English, Spanish, French… and in 2 years Russian). Musician playing 3 instruments. Googler. Enterprise Cloud sales executive. Talks at Google moderator. Curious human.
Our Coaches and Mentors will be with us throughout the day. We will open up the speed mentoring sessions in the coming weeks.
Hannah Beko
The Authentic Lawyer Coach
As a practicing commercial property lawyer (and legal business owner) I know very well the pressures and demands inside a legal career. In 2016 I founded Authentically Speaking my training and coaching consultancy for the legal profession. It’s mission is to change the culture in law so that stress isn’t simply accepted as part and parcel of the job and no one is leaving the career they trained so hard to join, because they can’t reconcile their career with their family/life. As the author of The Authentic Lawyer (2022) I am passionate about encouraging more authenticity inside the law for the benefit of clients, firms and lawyers. My mix of training & coaching/mentoring enables my clients to create the careers and lives they want to lead.
Mateja Rajacic
Confidence Coach
Mateja is a confidence coach specialising in helping professional and business women have unshakable confidence so that they can calmly and authentically face any challenge and achieve their fullest potential. Mateja is a certified business coach and NLP (neuro-linguistic programming) practitioner with experience in coaching, psychology, spirituality, and trauma healing. She is also a Compassionate Inquiry® trauma healing trainee and Reiki master. Her work is informed by her six-year-long deep personal healing, self-realisation, and self-awareness practice. To empower women in these changing times, Mateja has built a coaching program that enables women’s holistic body/mind/soul transformation. Mateja also holds webinars, talks and workshops in organisations to support their D&I efforts in gender equality and breaking the glass ceiling for female managers and leaders. In her free time, Mateja enjoys yoga and long walks. When it’s rainy, you can find her reading in coffee shops, painting mandalas, learning graphic design, or indulging in hot (dark) chocolate.
Dr Susan Rose
Founder, Rose and Bloom Coaching
Susan is the founder of Rose + Bloom Coaching. She works with women in mid to senior level positions to support their personal development and growth to achieve their career potential. She also works with female entrepreneurs and SMEs providing business planning for growth. Susan had a career in marketing and media before becoming an academic at Henley Business School where she held senior leadership roles. She continues to work as a coach, academic and writer.
Kate Goodwin
Founder, Amplio Coaching
Kate’s forward focus is on her coaching and mentoring business. As an ICF (International Coaching Federation) and NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) trained coach, Kate has a track record of delivering transformative coaching for all levels of leadership and management, working across multiple industries, and has recently added go-sober coaching to her credentials. She is the author of an empowerment programme to support anyone who is experiencing a period of change, big or small. She also acts as a tactical thinking partner for business owners and leaders who benefit from a safe space in which to build out the tactics needed to successfully achieve their strategic goals. An experienced non-executive Director with great people and communication skills, Kate has spent 30 years in the automotive collision repair industry and continues to offer strategic support and best practice guidance for businesses operating in the automotive claim and repair arena. Away from work, Kate is mum to two teenagers, a committed runner, and is also the Chair of Trustees at a teaching Academy, a role that she enjoys and has conducted for the last five years.
Ian Lyons
Managing Director at Vertical Evolution
As co-founder and developer of a National market leading online legal services company; Ian developed and implemented a million pound plus; industry disruptive sales and marketing strategy. He has mentored and advised 0000's of successful new business start ups from multiple sectors. Implemented the sales strategy for a now successful; regional Accountancy Practice. Founded and developed a niche Debt Management Company from start up to profitable trading company. Re-designed and implemented the business plan to re-establish a key Social Enterprise for a large National Charity.
Patricia Seabright
Founder, Archimedes Consulting
Patricia has been coaching since 2004 and has worked with hundreds of women (and men) over that time. She is currently undertaking a masters in executive coaching at Ashridge. As a coach she particularly focuses on working with women to help them overcome the challenges they face in the workplace. What she has observed throughout her career is that women can be held back by not recognising the (sometimes subtle) challenges and bias that surround them; these challenges and biases can negatively affect women’s careers, whether they realise it or not. She is passionate about gender balance in the workplace. During lock down, she made good use of her down time by writing a book, “She Said!” about the women being heard, which became an Amazon best seller. Like all executives, the pressure of the workplace for women is often intense and Patricia’s coaching seeks to provide the precious opportunity to have space and support to identify and process all the challenges faced. She supports her clients in formulating and executing plans for personal and professional progress.
Mary Jarrett
Executive Coach
Mary is a Chartered Accountant, MBA and EMCC accredited coach based in London’s Docklands. She coach’s SME business owners and employed leaders who have fallen out of love with what they do to rekindle their passion, rediscover fun and successfully navigate the constant change that we call life. It all started with a TEDx talk “Becoming Successfully Shy” when she truly understood that it is human connections that make a difference and not just performance targets. Following an extensive corporate career in FTSE 100 companies, Mary is now following her passion helping others achieve their goals. Whether you are already C-suite, have aspirations to get there or want to grow your business to compete with the best in your industry, her finance and IT experience together with her MBA and accounting qualifications will help you get there.
Previous Modern Woman Shows
If you have not attended a Modern Woman Show and would like to see the topics we cover and the quality of speakers who contribute, please take a look at our past shows.
Venue
The Grand Connaught Rooms,
61 - 65 Great Queen Street
London WC2B 5DA
Standing on Great Queen Street, that connects Covent Garden with Holborn in the West End of London, is the Grade II* listed De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms. With a history dating back to 1775, the building has long been an important event venue, and was once home to the original Freemasons’ Tavern before becoming a hotel in 1909. Since then, the venue has hosted some of the world‘s leading politicians, royalty and celebrities with its grand Georgian architecture and art-deco interiors offering 37 exceptional spaces for a wide range of conferences, exhibitions, meetings, training and weddings. Five minutes from Covent Garden and Holborn tube stations and 30 minutes’ walk or short taxi ride from Kings Cross, St Pancras and Euston train stations, the venue is well-connected for all major London transport links. Heathrow Airport is an hour away by rail or road.
Our 2025 Show Sponsors
Our 2025 Media Partners
