Daisy has worked with words since graduating as a journalist over ten years ago. She’s worked in travel, technology, healthcare and everything in between. Now she’s using her skills to help the Milspo Network, as our volunteer copywriter. She’s yet to start her own business – she’s hoping that working with Milspo and our fantastic community will give her more of an insight into working for herself – let’s hope we don’t put her off!

Married to a military man since 2019, she’s spent most of her life as a spouse in lockdown, but she’s looking forward to what the rest of 2021 and beyond will bring.

Helen established Helen Holt Photography in 2015, initially focusing on child portraits and family photography. After photographing a number of friends (who also happened to be MILSPOs) when they needed professional images for their businesses, she discovered a passion for working with, and supporting, fellow independent business owners through the genre of Brand Photography. Helen specialises in helping female-led small businesses and entrepreneurs elevate their brand with bespoke images.

Helen is also an experienced Trust & Foundation fundraiser, having worked in the charity sector prior to marrying her husband, who serves in the RAF. She has worked with the same small charity for almost ten years and continues to write funding proposals for Action for Children and Communities in Africa, which runs programs that support children with developmental disabilities in sub-Saharan Africa. Helen and Jack have two small children and one large dog.

www.helenholtphotography.com

Jess Sands is no stranger to the challenges of starting a business. A few years ago, she was a successful full-time graphic designer, with a portfolio including Disney, Caroline Gardner and Marks & Spencer.

But when she met her future husband, a pilot in the RAF, everything changed. Moving house every two years meant that Jess had to give up the career that she loved. After a year struggling to get employment in an often reluctant market to hire military spouses due to their transitory nature, Jess decided to develop her business Design Jessica. Since then, she has gone from strength to strength.

Jess is passionate about helping other military spouses, partners and other-halves through the same difficult transition that she made. Her business specialises in designing brands for new companies within the armed forces community.

Jess has been honoured as a top 100 UK SME business with Small Business Saturday in 2018, an f:entrepreneur 2019 top UK female entrepreneur and sits on the MOD Partner Employment Steering Group as a Milspo Ambassador. Milspo has been awarded a 2021 DRM Silver Award, and shortlisted for a Women In Defence Award. The InDependent Spouse podcast is sponsored by the Royal British Legion and has 13,500 downloads in over 20 countries.

Recent moves have seen Jess run her company from Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire…and back to Oxfordshire…and now from Central London, with the next posting expected in 2022!

www.designjessica.co.uk

I’m Rachel Luke, I set up my business in the midst of Covid-19 with the main aim of helping female-led small businesses with their admin and social media.

My business has now grown to include offering Power Hours to help people get the most out of their Social Media, live workshops on various Social Media and business topics, as well as my core element of helping small businesses find the extra time in their day by outsourcing their admin to me.

I honed my fast and accurate work technique over years spent working in the NHS where a mistake could mean the difference between life and death, but as my husbands RAF career has meant I have had to take a step back from my previous career, I now get huge amounts of joy from working with small business owners and helping their businesses to succeed.

Things that many people find “boring” I get joy from, whether it’s researching, scheduling or transcription, but nothing makes me happier than when I help someone to understand what they can do with their social media to get maximum results from minimum effort.

www.rachelluke.co.uk