I started my first business when I was 25. But I’d left school with only one GCSE in domestic science. At least it meant that I could cook!

I worked in a shop for a while and then decided that I needed to get an education so I did three A levels in a year.

Then I went on to do a degree at Sunderland University and got my first job selling Tampax machines in Durham.

It was tough enough walking into working mens club but the company I worked for insisted that we wear caps to make us stand out. I got to the point where I’d walk in, explain in a loud voice that I was there to service the Tampax machine and heads would drop immediately. It really toughened me up.

One day I was at the Reg Vardy dealership in Houghton le Spring – I managed to sell them a couple of toilet roll dispensers – and that was when I met Sir Peter Vardy.

He offered me a job in marketing and I worked with him for 3 or 4 years. It was amazing to work so closely with someone growing a business – and I was there in from the early days.

When I got married to a racehorse trainer I had to give up the job because we moved to live in Felton. One of my jobs as a trainer’s wife was to wash the jockeys’ racing silks.

I couldn’t believe how old fashioned the garments were.

I was really good with a sewing machine and I decided that I could make something better. So I launched my first business Winning Colours.

I always say that you need three unique selling points not just one – and not only had I improved the garment but I could also deliver in 3 weeks against the competition who delivered in 3 months.

I also introduced a new fabric that was used for children’s waterproofs and I ended up making my kids waterproof trousers using the same really bright colours that were used for the racing silks.

All my friends thought this was a fantastic idea. And all that was in the market at the time was an all-in-one rainsuit for kids available in either red or navy blue.

It’s really important to be aware of what’s already in the market – and by creating waterproof trousers in bright colours – one leg orange and one leg blue – I was bringing something new to the market.

I also developed a bag that became a pocket when the kids were wearing it, so the whole thing folded up into a bag.

Again, I’d identified a gap in the market, so I launched my second business – Baggers. And we started it with £10, a sewing machine and a kitchen table.

Within two years we were turning over £2.5m – and I still didn’t really know what an entrepreneur was.

I also didn’t really know where to turn. The business grew very quickly and I didn’t really know about cashflow and managing the finance.

I was good at marketing but I learned some tough lessons – especially with the bank and I lost the business because I didn’t understand about cashflow.

We did get an investor in but we’d lost control of the business – and I nearly lost my home too.

In fact, our investor was nearly Richard Branson. We’d managed to get a meeting with him and the lesson I learned was don’t be afraid to pick up the telephone and ask whoever.

I do believe that you can get a meeting with anyone you want to – you’ve just got to be brave about it.

After Baggers, we started a contract cleaning business but we had to do it with no money because it was all still tied up in the other business.

When my bank manager told me that they couldn’t lend me any money I said that we’d get people to pay up front. He said that would never work.

I said it would. And it did!

So that’s how we launched Rainbow Cleaning – it gave is the cash we needed to grow the business.

One thing I did to grow the business was to enter competition.

And through one of the competitions I won some training at the London Business School for women entrepreneurs.

It was that experience that inspired me to start the business I have now.

About then years ago I sold my share in Rainbow to my business partner Barbara and launched Fast Forward Now.

I think it’s so important that you learn about business and understand it – and Fast Forward Now works with people to do just that. It allows people to learn from the mistakes I made. And that’s something I’m passionate about.