Friday interview: Alice Rowen Hall on starting businesses during lockdown and advice to her younger self

Tell us a bit more about you and your background

I graduated from Sunderland University with a degree in journalism, but my graduation coincided with the recession in 2008. The recession made it very difficult to get a job in journalism, so I went into teaching instead.

After teaching for three years I felt a strong urge to have my own business but didn’t know what type. At that time, I struggled to buy clothing I liked online, so this felt like the perfect opportunity. My businesses now are all a response to frustrations I have had in my life.

After building Pink Boutique for eight years, I’ve now set up three new businesses in lockdown! There’s Lowkal, a low-calorie online food store, AllergyBox, an online store especially for allergy sufferers who struggle to shop, and Rowen Interior Design, a design agency. I have always loved English, marketing and psychology, and I think my ventures in business have been a combination of these three elements.

What is your advice to other young female entrepreneurs?

Lean into your intuition and teach yourself as much as you can. We have access to so much information now, I recommend learning all the functions in your business in order to be able to delegate and oversee them at a later date.

I’m also a massive fan of coaching, counselling and mentoring. Entrepreneurship can be very lonely and incredibly intense, so having someone to talk to each week that’s impartial can help you avoid burnout.

What would you tell your younger self if you could go back in time?

I’d tell myself that it doesn’t matter what other people think, do what makes you happy! I used to love computer games and never saw the value in them – but now I see that all those hours playing on them helped formulate my e-commerce strategy skills.

I also think it’s great to lean into your weaknesses. I have many – but I have strengths too. Young people nowadays might feel like they’re repeatedly told their weaknesses – lateness, lack of organisation, being too assertive with their parents or teachers, not concentrating. I had all of these too as a young person – and only in later life do I now understand how to get the best out of my time.

For example, I’m not a naturally organised person, so I delegate that to someone who loves organisation! I don’t concentrate for long periods of time, so I ensure I have freedom to move between tasks freely and ensure I’m giving myself tasks that I love to do.

I would encourage young people not to judge themselves against their peers. You are you, with your own interests, and that is your superpower. The world would be boring if we were all the same!