Repairwoman Who Made Millions

With a paintbrush in one hand and a spirit level in the other, Kerrie Keeling has found her place in an industry dominated by men.

Her company A Woman’s Touch consists almost entirely of women. Plumbers, painters, electricians – they’re all there, but the difference is, they won’t go for a 2-hour tea break then trudge paint through your hallway on their return.

“My staff have a woman’s eye for detail,” Keeling explains. “They’ll clean up after themselves everyday, even if that takes longer. Your house shouldn’t have to look like a building site for two weeks.”

Keeling’s clients range from women reluctant to let messy workmen in the homes, to DIY-shy men unwilling to admit to another man their inability to fix a tap.

The business, which has doubled its turnover year-on-year since launching in 2003, currently boasts annual revenues of $1000000.

Keeling had always harboured a desire to be her own boss but initially the lure of a comfy salary and solid career path in the City proved too strong.

After seven years working for investment banks, and with a recent promotion under her belt, she decided the time was right to step off the corporate ladder.

“I was getting frustrated with all the backstabbing,” she explains. “I hated the culture and it was so exhausting trying to fit in.”

Her frustration with corporate life coincided with some home renovations she was having done. “The guys that did it left such a mess and bullied me into paying more than they’d quoted.”

Keeling wanted decorators that arrived on time, were polite, tidied up – basically treated the place like their own home. It became obvious the solution was to set up her own decorating company, offering the level of customer service she expected.

Two weeks later, she handed in her resignation. While working her month’s notice Keeling phoned around the competition posing as a potential client to find out what they offered.

Armed with a bonus and reluctant to take on debt, she refused to fund the business through borrowing. Keeling’s only start-up costs were registering the company name and setting up a website – all for under £1,000. She now admits it would have grown much faster if she’d borrowed enough to employ others from the outset, however.

For the first three months, it was just her, a car and her dad’s toolkit, working seven days a week, evenings and weekends – and the only experience she’d had was decorating her own home.

Her first contracts came from her network of city acquaintances and Keeling is a firm believer in word-of-mouth promotion rather than advertising.

It was three months before Keeling employed a professional decorator but the company now boasts a 26-strong army of tradeswomen, despite only recently having moved the business out of her home into an office.

Keeling rarely picks up a paintbrush these days. Her focus rests with expanding the business, and she’s hoping to take it national through a series of branches and franchises.

“I hadn’t grasped just how much work would be involved when I started,” says Keeling. “But I’m actually quite glad because I may not have done it otherwise.
More at:http://www.awomanstouch.org.uk/
Via-Uncommonbusinesblog

Cludr gives internet users easy access to the most popular web sites in the world

Cludr gives internet users easy access to the most popular web sites in the world.
Cludr began by asking internet users what you would like to have in an online resource. Your response was very clear. With millions of websites “cluttering” the internet, you wanted a place where you could have easy access to the best sites.
That is what you will find on Cludr, easy access to the most popular websites in the world.Their aim is to cut down on web clutter, gleaning away the grist from the mill. To that end they’ve developed a web directory of sorts. You’ll find your basic Google search bar under which are a handful (18 to be exact) of focused categories. Click on health for instance, and you’ll be directed to another list of popular health and medical sites like WebMD and the Mayo Clinic. Click on jobs and you’ll get links to Monster, LinkedIn, Craigslist, Dice, and Indeed among others. Essentially, Cludr acts a straightforward list of bookmarks. If you’re one to abhor those perky social extras, like comments, user submission, ratings, etc. Cludr’s the place to go. You won’t find any clutter there, if anything at all.
More at:http://www.cludr.com/

Web Community For Web Professionals

New name, Jobalize becomes Who's Web.
This name better fits the service: a directory of web talents, for people who works around the web and want to exchange, collaborate or meet locally. Of course all permalinks are still working and are redirect to Who's Web. We added new markers for events like barcamps, local meetings, .... You can see who is coming and from where, so if it's a long distance may be you could do the trip together.
The site is based on a Google map search, where you can enter in a city or zone and see a list of people and events in the area. The locations are tagged on the map and exact directions are available. If a city search does not provide the right results you can improve the search by expanding the mileage of the area. With every search members can view the people and events and their specific purpose. For example, when searching “New York City” the right side of the page lists members and their specific area of expertise. Who’s Web is the new and improved version of Jobalize.com. The differences are that the new version is “two to three times faster” and has a new slick design that is easier to navigate. Additionally, to stay updated there is an RSS feed that notifies members of new subscriptions, tools, and events. Looking towards the future, Who’s Web is planning to provide a custom RSS feed to find out who is joining the site in your own area.
More at:http://www.who-s-web.com/

Now Compare Price And Shop On Your Cell Phone

With mShopper there is no guessing. With mShopper, you always have access to the best Internet pricing right through your phone. After you get your price, just show your phone to the store clerk. If he doesn't match your price, you can actually buy whatever you priced right through the phone in less time than it takes to check out in the store.If you are already registered on the site, buying is as easy as choosing “Buy It Now” and entering you pin number. If not, you can register on mShopper.com simply by entering your cell phone number and waiting for a text message with the link to the application and registering with a security pin code. mShopper.com has already joined forces with big stores such as Macy’s, OfficeDepot, and Target as well as smaller niche companies and is constantly looking for more partnerships. mShopper.com is also into philanthropy and gives users the opportunity to donate money during checkout. While shopping from a cell phone might seem like a logical step from the computer, the truth is that unless you are really trying to save that extra 15% it is more of a hassle to fiddle with your phone than just to buy the item.
More at:http://www.mshopper.com/

Radio Corridor is an online community of people working in the same company

Radio Corridor is an online community of people working in the same company. However it is not affiliated in any way with the companies that are hosted on this site. You may read and post company information that is available to all registered users of your company, or you may exchange messages with only a limited number of interested colleagues. For each message or comment that you write or forward, you can control who sees your name.Users can join existing forums e.g. the forum for ‘Crazy interview stories’, or ‘Customer service: the true story’, or ‘Are we better than the competition?’ or they can create their own. Each company’s network is private, so only company members can join (you’ll need a valid company email address), and even then each member can select who gets to see and read their messages. There is a public lounge which is open to everyone. There’s also a phonebook section where members can leave their contact deets if they please. Radio Corridor is and always will be free.
More at:http://www.radiocorridor.com/