Anne's exciting new adventure began at Venture House

A Warwickshire woman has a new lease of life after launching a new business – and is hoping it will do the same for others.

Anne Gwilliam was a successful management accountant but felt overworked, stressed and unhealthy.

So when she studied and qualified in nutrition and fitness, Anne decided it wasn’t just a healthier lifestyle that she needed - but a change of career. So she launched Solis Lifestyle – her own nutritionist and personal trainer business.

The company, based in Barford, offers fitness, nutrition and lifestyle coaching to create healthier, happier individuals and was given start-up support by the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce as part of the Warwickshire County Council-backed Coventry and Warwickshire Business Support Programme.

Anne said: “I had a background in accountancy and was comfortable with a lot of the aspects involved in setting up a business, however lacked experience in marketing and sales.

“I resigned from my day to day job and set about building Solis Lifestyle. I worked from home but soon came to realise there were too many distractions and things weren’t getting done.

“I was recommended to speak to the team at Venture House Business Centre located in Stratford-upon-Avon, which provides flexible office space in creative environment and offers an exciting alternative to traditional office space, offering ease-in-easy-out terms to suit business needs.

“Having started working from Venture House, I was introduced to Tanya King, a business coach with the Coventry and Warwickshire Chamber of Commerce.

“The support exceeded expectations and is of the same standard as any business courses that I have paid for professionally. The support does not just cover general concepts it is tailored to my specific requirements ensuring I have tangible outcomes.”

Anne delivers group personal training sessions and provides one to one personal training, nutrition and lifestyle coaching.

“I work with anyone looking to improve their health and wellbeing but also has a keen interest in health issues, mobility problems and weight loss particularly with the over-50s sector who sometimes forget their own importance,” she said.

Anyone setting up a new business or within the first 12 months of setting up is entitled to free business support through the Chamber. Through this, Anne was able to receive one-to-one mentoring and attend a number of events aimed at helping people set up or develop a new business.

“Working with Anne has been really rewarding," said Tanya King. "It is great to see a business go from strength to strength and using the facilities and services that are available to people in the region.”

For more information or to book on call the Chamber on 024 7665 4321 or log on to www.cw-chamber.co.uk

* The Coventry and Warwickshire Business Support Programme is funded by the European Regional Development Fund, in partnership with Coventry City Council, Warwickshire County Council and the District and Borough Councils. 

The facilities at Venture House and the coaching provided by the Chamber of Commerce are supported by Stratford-on-Avon District Council, The Growth Deal, Coventry & Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership, Warwickshire County Council and European Regional Development Funding.