I'm a winner!

Today, NatWest announced 15 inspiring female role models from thousands of applicants from a breadth of industries across the country. This list includes Dundee’s independent, vegan fashion designer and mental health advocate, Deborah Breen, Founder and Director of Wilde Mode. The project aims to help change the visual perception of female-run businesses.

The UK’s famous spirit of entrepreneurship is resolute, despite one of the toughest years in recent history, which has had a disproportionate impact on female entrepreneurs. The International Monetary Fund has cautioned that Covid-19 threatens to roll back the last 30 years of economic gains for women.

This is one of the reasons why NatWest and Getty Images partnered to launch a nationwide campaign and competition to tackle stereotypes of female founders and help create a more inclusive visual landscape that shows entrepreneurs as they really are.

Wilde Mode is a gender and size-inclusive brand that prides itself on promoting positive mind, body and soul confidence through its garments and ethos. After struggling with depression and fibromyalgia, Deborah Breen founded Wilde Mode in 2018, now a successful and inclusive brand loved by people of all shapes and sizes across the globe. From underwear to reusable face wipes, not a single piece of waste goes into a bin within the studio, Deborah prides herself on having a 100% carbon neutral footprint for both herself and her staff by planting 864 trees a year plus one tree for every sale made.

The NatWest #BeTheRoleModel prize includes:

-Photoshoots with Getty Images

-Regular Financial Health Checks for up to one year after receiving the prize, from RBS local, dedicated Business Growth Enabler

-1:1 with Entrepreneur Development Manager to assess their needs and connect them to the right bespoke support from the networks

-Coaching sessions with Entrepreneur Acceleration Manager or Scale Up Acceleration Manager

-Support & expertise from bank Business Growth Enablers & hub mentors