Tech founders lead Tide everywoman entrepreneur awards

Two technology founders have taken top honours at this year's Tide everywoman Entrepreneur Awards, as the programme highlighted both the pressure on women-led businesses and their expectations of revenue growth in the year ahead.

Julie Collison, director of Dublin-based data and analytics consultancy Clear Strategy, received the Scale Up Award. Emma O'Brien, founder and chief executive of transformation consultancy Embridge Consulting in Kent, won the Tech Innovator Award.

The awards recognise female founders across sectors and stages of growth. Winners range from start-ups challenging established markets to leaders of multi-million-pound companies and founders with a strong social focus.

Organisers said more than 300 business leaders, investors and supporters of female entrepreneurship attended this year's ceremony in London.

New data from the Female Business Owners Index 2025 from Tide and everywoman shows a difficult backdrop for women-led firms. Respondents identified falling consumer spending, inflation and political uncertainty as the most common setbacks. The report found that 67% of female entrepreneurs expect their revenues to increase over the next year despite these conditions.

Challenging environment

The awards sit within a wider initiative by everywoman and its partners to raise the profile of women founders and address barriers in access to finance and networks.

Nicole Goodwin and Sophie Catto, joint managing directors of AllBright everywoman, said the current backdrop was among the most testing of recent years.

"Female entrepreneurs across the UK are demonstrating extraordinary perseverance, optimism and ambition in one of the toughest business climates in recent years. Female founders are working longer hours and navigating multiple pressure points, yet their determination has never been stronger.

"By bringing together a powerful community of role models, investors, mentors and partners, these awards not only celebrate success stories but actively create them by opening doors to funding, commercial opportunities and strategic support. This year's finalists and winners are bold innovators, breaking down deep-rooted barriers for the next generation of female founders. We are immensely proud to celebrate their achievements and champion the unstoppable women who are reshaping the UK's entrepreneurial landscape," said Goodwin.

Data founder recognised

The judges selected Collison for the Scale Up Award. She launched Clear Strategy in 2018 without external funding while raising three young children as a single mother. She and her business partner developed the firm from a small consultancy into a business that competes with multinational consulting groups in data and analytics.

The company operates in a technical field that remains male-dominated. Collison has spoken about bias during her career and the pressure she felt to demonstrate credibility in front of corporate clients. The firm now works with senior executives across multiple industries.

On accepting the award, Collison highlighted the contribution of her team.

"This award isn't just for me - it goes out to our team and my business partner. I never dreamed eight years ago we would be anywhere near the size we are today. I would like to thank everywoman for this platform. Women are still underrepresented in the tech industry, and it's incredible to get this recognition," said Collison.

Tech Innovator Award

O'Brien received the Tech Innovator Award for her work at Embridge Consulting. She founded the business from her kitchen table after redundancy following the birth of her second child. The consultancy focuses on transformation projects for mid-sized organisations that face complex systems change and limited internal resource.

The company has expanded without external funding and has developed a model that places culture and ethics alongside delivery metrics. O'Brien has also used the business as a base for new social initiatives.

She has spoken publicly about the loss of her son Leo, which she described as a defining point in her life and work. The experience led her to create Leo's Angels, a memorial fund that uses technology in efforts to improve epilepsy care.

On stage, O'Brien said she had only recently begun to see herself as part of the entrepreneurial community.

"I was introduced to the entrepreneurship ecosystem in 2023, after being in business for 12 years when I didn't identify myself as an entrepreneur. Everyone in the room is absolutely incredible and you lift up the UK's whole entrepreneurship system. I would not be here today without the family of entrepreneurs I have found. Thank you to everywoman for this amazing opportunity and platform," said O'Brien.

Broader winner list

The awards cover multiple categories and sectors. Toria Chan and Jules Shiel-Boulger, co-founders of Sheffield-based STEPS Rehabilitation, were named Woman of the Year. Zoe Williams, founder of Aegle's in London, received a Tide grant of £20,000 for an exceptional female-founded small or medium-sized enterprise.

Other category winners included: Daisy Knatchbull, founder and chief executive of London tailoring brand Knatchbull, who received the Brand of the Future Award sponsored by The White Company; and Rana Righton, managing director of The Gluten Free Bakery in London, who secured The Balance Award.

Ruby Raut, chief executive of reusable period wear company WUKA in Welwyn Garden City, won the Entrepreneur for Good Award sponsored by Specsavers. The International Expansion Award, sponsored by Rathbone Financial Planning, went to Karen Hewitt, chief of retail at Swansea-based Character.com.

Charlotte Stagg and Jessica Lancaster, co-founders and chief executives of accessories businesses Coconut Lane UK and Cocopup London in Witney, picked up The Next Level Award sponsored by Saffery. The Social Star Award went to Daisy Kelly, founder and chief executive of Hammersmith-based Glow For It.

The Solopreneur Award went to Katy Fridman, founder of Flexible Working People in London. The Small Enterprise Award sponsored by Tide went to Rosie Skuse, founder and chief executive of Molto Music Group in London. Tide also presented an additional £1,000 grant to Skuse and Molto Music Group.

Investor backing

The awards draw on financial and institutional support from Tide and BGF among others. Tide, a business management platform focused on small firms, supported the research and several categories. BGF, a growth capital investor active in the UK and Ireland, sponsored the Scale Up Award.

George Schmidt, Tide UK/Europe chief executive, said the group views female entrepreneurship as central to business growth in the UK.

"This year's winners and nominees capture exactly what makes female entrepreneurship such a powerful force in the UK. Many women have been navigating tougher conditions, yet the founders recognised today have shown remarkable ambition and creativity in how they are building and growing their businesses.

"The Tide everywoman Entrepreneur Awards do more than celebrate individual success stories. They help create the conditions for those successes by giving founders greater visibility, stronger networks and access to opportunities that too many women are still denied.

"At Tide, we're committed to helping women-led businesses start, scale and thrive, which is why our partnership with everywoman is so important to us. The founders honoured this year are reshaping their sectors and inspiring the next generation of entrepreneurs. We're proud to stand alongside them and support the momentum they are creating," said Schmidt.

Gemma Hamilton, Head of Origination at BGF, said the investor views the awards as aligned with its wider focus on funding women-led firms.

"At BGF, we're committed to championing the successes of female founders, which is why we are delighted to be associate sponsor of the 2025 everywoman Entrepreneur Awards for the fourth year running. It's so important to recognise the outstanding contribution that talented female founders make to the wider economy. At BGF, we're proud to have committed at least £300 million to support female entrepreneurship over the next five years, adding to our £540+ million capital deployment in some of the UK's most exciting and ambitious female powered businesses to date," said Hamilton.

This year's winners were selected by a panel of senior business leaders, founders and investors including White Company founder Chrissie Rucker, Here We Flo co-founder Susan Allen, Solar Buddies director Kelli Aspland, Black Seed Ventures chief of staff Yvonne Nagawa, The Listening Place chief executive Sarah Anderson and Revenge Capital founder and managing partner Nell Daly.