"The system of networking has generally been made by men for men."

Hilary Lewis

Welcome back to wo0 pod, the unapologetic space where women refuse to be told what to wear or how to run their businesses. Hosted by Wendy Gannon (aka wo0), this podcast is part of Female Five Million, a movement lifting the voices of women who are done with playing small.

This week, Wendy sits down with Hillary Lewis, community builder, speaker, connector, former beauty entrepreneur turned finance rebel, to talk about what happens when you create the spaces you wish existed.

From running a salon at 22, to launching spa days for women in finance, founding networking groups, and now stepping into her new role as Community Manager of Digital Accountants Club, Hillary’s story is about building something better, not just for herself—but for every woman who's ever felt out of place at a 7am breakfast club full of suits.

In This Episode

• How Hillary went from running a beauty business to speaking at Accountex (twice!)
• Why “I don’t know what I’m doing” can be a superpower when you say it out loud
• Starting a business young, pivoting after kids, and never settling for the ‘default’ path
• Why so many women still feel like outsiders in male-dominated industries
• Creating events that actually work for women (hint: no 7am bacon butties required)
• How the Corporate Ladies Club grew from 30 to 130+ members, raising thousands for charity
• Making people feel seen, heard and welcomed—and why that’s more powerful than any business card

About Hillary Lewis:

Hillary is a community-builder, event strategist, and speaker who has spent the last two decades helping women connect, collaborate and be seen. With a background in beauty, marketing, and finance, she now works as Community Manager for Digital Accountants Club, where she’s creating inclusive spaces that prioritise connection, confidence, and visibility. She’s also a founding member of the Corporate Ladies Club, an ever-growing women’s networking group.

Connect with Hillary Lewis:

• LinkedIn: Hillary Lewis
• Corporate Ladies Club: Find out more on LinkedIn

Connect with wo0:

• Instagram: @wo0photography
• LinkedIn: Wendy (wo0) Gannon
• Newsletter: Subscribe for updates

Work with wo0:

• Want to feel unstoppable in your photos and your business? Book a shoot with wo0
• Join the Female Five Million movement – because this rebellion needs your voice

This is a Decibelle Creative Original Podcast

Need help launching your podcast, strategy-first and fluff-free? Meet Buckers:

• Instagram: @decibelle_creative
• Website: decibellecreative.com

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Join the Female Five Million Movement

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• Tell your story. Join the rebellion.

>> Wo0: Welcome to don't fucking Tell me what to wear or

how to run my business.

>> Wo0: This is the Woopod.

>> Wo0: I'm your host, Wendy Gannon, but most people call

me Woo. I'm a photographer. Adhder. Huh? Female

advocate.

>> Wo0: And let's be honest, an all round fucking legend.

>> Hillary Lewis: Can.

>> Wo0: Can you tell I didn't write this script? This

podcast is part of Female5Million, a movement

founded to empower women to step the fuck up, take

control, and unapologetically own their space. It

all started with some fucking Jebbins LinkedIn

post spouting some sexist bullshit about how women

should dress to succeed in business. And you know

what?

>> Wo0: Stuff like that really me off. It really fucks me

off.

>> Wo0: So I posted about it and that post ignited

something bigger. a nationwide photography

project, a full blown fucking movement. And now

this podcast here on the Woopod, we're raising the

voices of women.

>> Wo0: Who refuse to be told what to do.

>> Wo0: Women who are done playing by the rules and are

now saying, don't fucking tell me what to wear or

how to run my business. If you've ever been told

to tone it down, dress more appropriately or run

your business like a man that.

>> Hillary Lewis: Expect.

>> Wo0: Raw, unfiltered conversations with women who have

fought through sexism, abuse, and outdated,

patriarchal to build success on their terms. all

whilst wearing whatever the fuck they want. Oh,

and there's more swearing than our producer is

willing to beep out.

>> Wo0: Sorry, buckers.

>> Wo0: Speaking of which, you'll probably hear me ask

producer backers to chime in from time to time.

>> Wo0: Because, like, give a what she says. We've both

got adhd. We bounce well off each other. deal with

it.

>> Wo0: We're here to celebrate women doing business their

way and shine a spotlight on the incredible ways

women are fighting back and lifting each other up.

Because, to be honest, that's what it's all about.

And, for those who aren't able to speak up right

now for whatever reason. I see you. Okay, let's

crack on then.

>> Wo0: Hello, hello, hello there, everybody. Welcome to

the Woo Pod. the don't tell me what to wear or how

to run my business, season.

>> Wo0: hopefully there'll be another.

>> Buckers: I feel like you're reading us a bedtime story.

>> Wo0: I'm channelling Tom Hardy.

>> Buckers: I'd love to channel Tom Hardy.

>> Hillary Lewis: Right.

>> Wo0: Tom Hardy can channel me up the channel. And

today's guest is my beautiful friend, Hillary

Lewis. Hello, Hillary Lewis. How are you, Hilary

Lewis?

>> Hillary Lewis: I'm good, I'm good. I'm, hot and, but, yeah, I'm

all good. I'm excited to be on, actually. Do you

know what? It's like, one of those things that

I've been so nervous to come on. You always have

such amazing women. I was like, oh, God, what can

I talk about? As you know.

>> Wo0: See, look, this is. This is.

>> Buckers: That's why you're here, Hillary.

>> Wo0: This is the whole point. Everybody's got something

to say. Everybody's a strong woman. What the are

you talking about? You're a powerhouse.

>> Hillary Lewis: Well, yeah, I know, but I think it's that thing,

isn't it? You don't really see, like, I. I think

where I've come. I feel like I've come in so late.

I've come in to corporate or, you know, I owned my

own business for such a long time, and I think

that it. It just really threw me joining, like,

corporate. And I don't.

>> Wo0: So you think that you're. So you're putting

yourself underneath these women who have been in

corporate and, now started their own businesses.

When you had your own business for year. Sorry,

businesses for years, then went into corporate,

smashed the. Out of it, started did your own

events. M. Like, started all of these networking

things, and you're like, sorry, what?

>> Hillary Lewis: What? What? Yeah, when you put it like that, it

does sound like. Like ten shades of batshit. But

I, Yeah, I just think you do, don't you? Like, I

don't think. I think. I think it's really common

for whatever you're. It's not even, like. It's not

even that I compare because I'm very good at just

doing my own thing, but I just don't see any of my

achievements or anything that I've done. Like,

sometimes my friends, they're like. You're like,

so many stuff you've done is, like, quite unlike.

It's actually unreal. Like, the. Like. I know it's

such a stupid thing to be like, oh, it's just like

the. For example, the top 50 women in accounting.

Like, the fact that I have that and I'm not even

actually an accountant is sometimes when I think

about it.

>> Wo0: Exactly.

>> Hillary Lewis: But, yeah, I still just feel like, oh, I don't

know. I don't even know. Sorry.

>> Wo0: Hillary Lewis, you spoke at Accountex twice. You

spoke at Accountex last year, and they invited you

back to do workshops. That was so sold out. That

was fully booked, people going out the doors.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, I know. I just.

>> Wo0: So take a good, long, hard look at yourself,

please.

>> Hillary Lewis: It's not. It's not even like, I don't know. It's

just one of those things, isn't it? I think

sometimes it's not. I wouldn't even necessarily

class it as impostor syndrome. I just it's almost

like, oh, that it's. I get that so many people

find it so like cringe worthy when you make

yourself visible and you do stuff and like to talk

about yourself. I think that's the thing. Like

I'm. Everyone else is hype woman. Like I, I love,

I'm so impressed. I'm so in awe of so many of the

women that I work with and meet and see on a daily

basis. I just, I don't know, just. Yeah, I suppose

I just don't see my own achievements in the same

light.

>> Wo0: Yeah. And I get that. but what I'm just trying to

tell you is that you deserve to have this space

and your voice and you're wonder. So what do you

do, Hillary Lewis?

>> Hillary Lewis: Well, I have just joined the digital accountants

club. So I'm their community manager. So I have

literally just joined. So my, my role is being

defined. I'm building it as, as we go. But

basically as I explained to my 8 year old this

morning and Mummy's new job is that she gets to

look after people, which really sits well with me

because that's what I've done for years and

actually bringing people together and for them to

get like the most out of the community, not just

like they're learning all the time about like AI

and the digital and the tech side of things, which

is not really my bag at all, but the bringing

people together and actually getting them to

really enjoy and just, I don't know, I'm, I'm like

the glue. That's the best way to describe it. I'm

the glue that will hold everyone's.

>> Wo0: You really are. You really are. can you talk me

through? So I want, I, I want to hear some of the

things you've achieved. You started off in beauty,

you had your own salon.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah.

>> Wo0: and then you went into finance.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yes.

>> Wo0: How was that?

>> Hillary Lewis: Mental. So it was a bit mind blowing really

because. So I started my beauty salon at ah, 22

and I owned it for 15 years. Wow. And I did have

another business alongside that that was like a

vacation rental property business over in the us

so very much like hospitality, beauty, nothing to

do with finance at all. And then had my kids and

was like, I can't spend this long with my

children, they're driving me nuts. So I need to go

back once they start school. And I basically

joined and was like, I need to learn how to do my

job. Like, I'd not. Is that again, this. Going

back to this, like, oh, I don't know what I'm

doing. I had that thing of, like, I'd never. While

I'd marketed my own businesses, I was going in

solely to market a finance company, which I've

never done, and I didn't really know where to

start. And I was a bit like, oh. And I. I know how

to market. I've done it for myself, but just not

done it for someone else. So I was a bit like, I

would like to meet other women in the industry.

Where are they? And they were like, oh, well,

finance. There's not many women in the industry.

Like, there's very few. And I. I think for me, I

just feel more comfortable saying to another

woman, can you help me? I don't really know what

I'm doing. Like, I think as a woman going into a

male environment, sometimes that can feel like, I

don't know, you can get a bit. Like, sometimes

they can mansplain and sometimes they can be very

patronising with, like, how they talk to you. But

also, I think you can. If you discredit yourself

like that and say, oh, actually, I don't feel like

I know what I'm doing. They won't necessarily

nurture you in the same way that a woman would.

Like, coming from beauty, it's predominantly

women, like, and this is this far more

collaborative. There's not that much competition.

You know, all the local salons, the owners tend to

know each other, like, the therapists know each

other. You know, of. You'll go in and, you know,

most people have treatments in other places to

kind of, you know, people think it's a busman's

holiday, but actually you're. It's like that

market research and not just understanding what

other people are doing. And there's a lot of,

like, collaboration when new treatments and trends

come out. And I guess I was like, well, I want to

meet other women in the industry. Where are the

networking events? And they were like, oh, well,

you can go to this, this and this. And they were

all like, 7 o' clock in the evening drinks or 7:30

in the morning, breakfast club. And I'm like,

well, I can't do either of those. I'm a mum with

kids. I've got, like, them to get to school and

sort out and bedtime to do. I'm not prepared to

miss any of that. And I was like, well, I'm going

to start my own then. And that's kind of what

happened. I started doing, like. I think I did a

women in Finance spa day, because that's my, like,

obviously my. My known safety net. And I was like,

oh, that people like that. And, yeah, did that to

start with and then moved over to, like,

networking branches where I could get more women

in together. And it was just really, really

helpful to understand not only my role, but the

experiences that other women were having in the

industry. And I was shocked. Like, literally blew

my mind because, again, I don't know if I was

naive, but coming from a predominantly female

industry, I didn't really think. I thought that,

like, sexism, because I started at 22. You've got

to kind of go back. Like, I didn't think it was as

much of a thing because I was like, there was all

women around me. My, clients were mainly women.

All the other business owners I know knew and,

like, collaborated with and stuff. They were all

women like, I. And on a social side, I never

really experienced sexism or misogyny at all. And

so I kind of had grown up in that space and just

didn't see it. And I thought, like, oh, these

women that bang on about equality, like, I'm, you

know, we're there now. Like, what are they talking

about? Boom, boom, boom. Yeah. It really was like

listening to the other women in the industry.

Like, I'm. I must put my hands up and say I have

been exceptionally lucky, but that's because I

built the space that I was surrounding myself in.

So I. I don't think I. I really experienced

anything negative and that side of things. But

listening to the other women, and that's. That's

across finances, not just. So that's like

accountants, women who work in, you know,

bookkeeping, women, who work for lenders, they all

had very similar stories and it was just like, oh,

real, like, patriarchy sucks moment. And I think I

never really classed myself as a feminist, but the

more I was like, hang on a minute, this isn't

right. None of this is right. They shouldn't be

experiencing this. And then I kind of started

vocalising that in the content that I was

producing on LinkedIn and it just kind of

escalated. And then I obviously met people like

you and was like, oh, this is. Yeah, it's not just

finance that this is a problem. It's like, across

the board.

>> Wo0: Absolutely. Didn't you start something? What

brunch was it that I kept meaning to join and come

down to.

>> Hillary Lewis: Oh, the Corporate Ladies Club.

>> Wo0: Yes, the Corporate fucking Ladies Club.

>> Buckers: Yeah.

>> Hillary Lewis: I think we've got about 400 members now. I haven't

actually checked. so I'm one of, I'm one of the

founding members basically. there's a lady, Diane

Gill, who works for Sage House, Tangmere. They're

an amazing dementia support charity and they

basically have a facility, it's one of the,

they've now got two in the country but top notch

facilities that help support those living with

dementia and the families that live with them. And

I'd got friendly with her and I did a lot at

Goodwood and the, then one of the like the estate

manager at Goodwood, the Goodwood Estate messaged

me and was like oh I've just met a really nice

solicitor and she wants to do more networking. And

I, I told her that you and Diane would take her to

lunch and we were like yes, definitely, that's you

know, what we need today. And when we got chatting

with Louise Turner, who's a very good false

allegation specialist, she and I and Diane were

saying like this is ridiculous. There should be

more like female networking that's, that's

inclusive, that isn't around the 7:00am mark and,

or the 7:00pm or that is going to affect like the

school run. And we basically said well let's just

invite people to like a, a a small thing. I think

we started with like 30 members and we had we

always have the same format so free flow

networking. Then an inspirational female speaker.

So it's someone who's just going to talk about

their life and some of the journey that they've

had. And then we have a paid like a sponsored

position where one of the members within the, the

club can get up and just tell everyone a bit more

about their business and what they do and how the

way that they run things and then a little bit

more networking at the end. And it's just like

escalated really quickly. So we were bi monthly

and then we ended up going monthly and now we're

monthly plus like golf lessons and bits and pieces

in between. And the nicest thing about it is it's

raised so much money for the charity because the

way that we do it is that we just, everyone just

pays ten pounds to come and attend. So it's

limited numbers so you'd be a member and you can

get the whole list of what the events but once

those places have gone you can't like you're. And

they're always fully booked, so they. They range

from like 40 people to around 70. And then I think

our, ah, summer soiree normally has about 130

people attend. So, yeah, it's like, it's been

phenomenal, but really good for women in the local

area.

>> Wo0: Do you remember when you said that you weren't

like, what are you going to talk about? You don't

think you should be on this podcast?

>> Hillary Lewis: Well, yeah, I know when you put it like that, but

to be fair, I don't really feel me. I feel like

Diane does loads more for it than I do. I'm just

like, oh, m. I'm a founding member. Where she's

like, oh, you know.

>> Wo0: Right, you're right. Let's stop this talking.

Right? Stop it. You, you. I feel like this is more

than that. I don't feel like I could do this. Stop

it.

>> Hillary Lewis: Okay, will do.

>> Wo0: Hillary, you came to the female 5 million photo

shoot in London. didn't you?

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, I did.

>> Wo0: How did you find it?

>> Hillary Lewis: Incredible. Like, blew my socks off. And it was

one of those moments like, that you walked into

the space. It was a very cool space. Music was

blaring, like, the vibe was just down. And there

were other women in there that I knew, like,

straight away. And we were all like, everyone was

chatting and gassing each other up. And then like,

Rebecca Pay came in, took her clothes off and spun

around a pole. It was just like crazy like that.

You can't. But I can't vocalise. I'm one of these

people that's like, I'm very expressive with my

face and that is just literally what it was just

like, you know when you're just like, oh, my God,

so good.

>> Wo0: The whole thing was just.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, it was accurate. That was very accurate.

>> Wo0: that there is something that I really do want to

talk about. your mum.

>> Hillary Lewis: My mum. Oh, God. Hi, Mom. She's going to watch

this. She watches everything.

>> Wo0: Hi, Mom. I love you. Now, Now, Hillary explained

to me that her mum. you say it.

>> Hillary Lewis: She gave me a lift.

>> Wo0: I'm going to put words in your mouth.

>> Hillary Lewis: I think this is what you're talking about. My mum

gave me a lift to the ST station on the day of the

shoot. And my mom. Little bit of a backstory. My

mum was an English teacher. She's quite like. I

don't know if she would consider herself prim and

proper, but I think most of my friends consider

her prim and proper. Like my husband, when he

first Met. He was like, God, your mum sounds like

the queen. Like, she's like, he's. He's quite.

She's quite. I do a very accurate impression,

which I think she will hate me for it if I do. But

she was like, she gets. I get in the car. And she

was like, so where. Where are you take. Where am I

taking you today? And I was like, oh, well, I'm

going to. I'm going to a photo shoot, Mom. My

mom's in her 70s as well. Again, she's gonna hate.

She's gonna hate me. I'm so sorry, Mom. M. And I.

And she's like, oh, what are you doing there? More

lunching? I was like, well, no, actually, I'm

going to. I'm going to a photo shoot. and she's.

Oh, is that for work? And I said, well, actually,

it's this thing, it's called the female 5 million.

We've basically, my friend Wendy, she's. She

spotted online there was this absolute horrible

idiot man who said that women should cover up and

shouldn't. Like, if they want to act professional,

they shouldn't be, like, covered. They should be

dressed to their neck and like a Victorian. And

that's how I worded it to her. And she was like,

yeah. Oh. She said, so. So what are you gonna

like? She's like, well, you look nice. What.

What's everyone else gonna wear? I said, well,

there's Mum, there's women. Where's women from all

different sorts of professions and some work from

home, some work, you know, they might be in their

gym gear. They're all, you know. And she's like,

wow, I think it's amazing they can wear exactly

what they want. She was like, well, I think that's

disgusting. Like, you can't say that. I want, you

know, I think it's incredible Wendy's doing and

that. Ah, I think it's, you know, they can bloody

well wear what they want if they're in their bra

and pants and they're still professional. Or

something along those lines. Is that what she

said?

>> Wo0: What a legend. And, So you've started over these

networking things. Things. You started this

networking group. You're going to be a community

manager. Do you think it is difficult for women to

network or more difficult for women to network?

Talk to me. Talk. Talk to me. Talk to me about

that.

>> Hillary Lewis: Talk to me, Terry. I think.

>> Wo0: Talk to me.

>> Hillary Lewis: I think that, women find it really hard to

network. I think, again, the system of networking

has generally been, you know, made by Men for men,

which suits them great. But if you are a working

mum or if the. It's not just working mums, I

always feel like, oh, you know. But if you've got

a school run.

>> Wo0: That'S your lived experience.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, my lived experience.

>> Wo0: That's your lived experience? Yeah.

>> Hillary Lewis: If you've got a school run to do or a school

pickup to do or a family or a, you know, a dog

that you have to go and feed at 7 o' clock at

night and you're tired. Like, I don't think

network for me, networking is part of my job. I do

not, I have enough friends. I don't want to go

there for friendships. They sometimes come as a

byproduct, which is fantastic. But that's not who

I choose or how I choose to socialise. I consider

that work and I think that all networking should

be done within working hours. Like I think that's

a massive thing. And so many networking events

aren't. so I feel like, I think that the issues

that women face more is that not only is the

networking event an inconvenient time for their

lifestyle, it generally mix networking because

it's not convenient for women. Less women will

attend that event. So sometimes when you get to an

event, you might be one of five women in the room.

and then you have like all the other extra things

that layer on that. Like again going back to

outfits and what I'm wearing. Like if you are one

of five women in a room and you're wearing a low

cut top and everyone is in a high cut, like neck

top, are you going to be the one that is

remembered for wearing the low cut top or the

short skirt or are you the one in heels or you the

one who's got makeup on? Like you're trying too

hard. Like there's so much that comes with it and

not necessarily that, that's men making us feel

like that. That's a lot of, that's pressure that

we're putting on ourselves. Like, how are we going

to be perceived when we get into this like meat

market? you know, it's just, it's not a nice

feeling. And I think that is very off putting for

women. And I think that, you know, a lot of men,

not a lot of people sometimes say like, oh, why is

there need for female networking? Why are there

female only events? Well, I think a lot of that

comes from, just feeling like a safe space, A safe

space to say, God, I'm boiling today. Like, oh,

it's my, it's it's not the heat is my men is the

menopause or. And not feeling like you're suddenly

judged for the way that you're, you know, with a

way that you're speaking. And. And I've obviously,

I've started with all female networking, that's.

But my networking has progressed and I've put on

mixed events and the mixed events I've put on or

been involved with have actually been a very 50,

50 split of men and women, which is kind of

unheard of. You don't normally get that. and those

events, they've been received so well because

there is an. A very nice mix and there is a

friendly, welcoming environment, but it's very

hard to get the balance right. You know, not. I

think networking is all about your audience. And

this is where, like, for me, my community manager

position, I am, I'm not worrying about what other

communities are doing, what other community

managers are doing. Like, I've never done this

role before. I'm going in with so much enthusiasm.

I can't wait to kind of crack on and get started

with it. But my first port of call will be to

interview the members to really get to know them,

to understand what books they read, what music

they like. Like the stuff that seems trivial to a

lot of people, but actually they're the thoughtful

things. Like if you can centre your event around

the people that you want to attend and make it

solely for them, then they are going to have a

good time. And it's all about that. Like any sort

of marketing should be or business should be about

your client and the client experience and how

they're going to enjoy it. And if you're thinking

about making something for men, then it doesn't

matter if that it's, you know, seven in the

morning because most of the men don't have the

school run to do, you know, or less men have the

school run to do. And so this is why I think that

patriarchy has played a massive part in the way

that networking has a negative impact on women and

why it's so difficult for women to get involved in

it and feel comfortable doing it. Because before

the system has been completely geared up to men

and men's lives and the way that they work. Which

is fine when it was just men in the work place,

but there's not just men in the workplace now

we're in 2025, you know, so that's why making

inclusive events, it's so important.

>> Wo0: Yeah, I love your events. So the first event

Because I, Hillary invited me to. Was that the

first time we met, like in person?

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, in the flesh.

>> Wo0: So Hillary invited me to a yacht day.

>> Buckers: Oh my God Day.

>> Wo0: A yacht day.

>> Hillary Lewis: I really enjoyed that parking.

>> Wo0: Brilliant.

>> Buckers: So is this a networking event on a yacht?

>> Hillary Lewis: Well, so. Well, this kinda.

>> Wo0: I mean I got business out of it.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah. So for the, the company I worked with at the

time, for them it was like a cross, like a

multifunctional campaign. So. So for me it was a

marketing campaign. So the people that I had on

the yacht were mainly a mixture of useful

connections, as in people who work with

accountants, influencers as such, but key

influences in industries that we want to work in

or work with. and the way that the event worked is

that the people who were going to attend, not only

would they have a fabulous yacht day, they would

get to mingle with each other and promote their

own businesses and have the opportunity to

collaborate and move forward with each other, but

gain visibility through. So it was quite

strategic. There were, you know, we had members

from different, backgrounds that were, would, if

they did work together, could really boost, their

businesses, basically their presence. Whether, you

know, like getting photos with Wendy, for example,

if they didn't already have brand photos, then it,

it positioned Wendy as the, perfect choice for

them to then work with because they would have got

to know like, and love her and be like, oh, she's

amazing, I need to work with this woman. but the

added element was the fact that everyone who went

on that yacht day spoke about it on LinkedIn and

shared. So it was fantastic for brand visibility.

Like straight away, the whole feed on LinkedIn,

like the next week, I think, was just full of

these amazing yacht photos and the amount of

people that were then messaging me going, oh my

God, this looks incredible. I want it next one

next. When you do, I want in kind of thing which

is, you know, very good for brand awareness. But

since then, like the actual company from, from our

point of view, we got business out of, positioned

us. Like, I, I mean I might have got on the

account X stage before that, but it certainly

positioned me in a really good, way with the, the

account X, organisers because they were on the

yacht. in fact, I think a number of people who

were on that yacht day have since spoken at

accountex. So, you know, it's things like that.

Networking. I have. Yeah, you have. I think M.

Rosalia did. Kim McGinley has like. I think that's

the thing, isn't it? Sometimes networking done in

the right way can open up so many doors and it's

not necessarily like an immediate win. You're

always playing the long game with networking

generally. but, yeah, different events you can,

you can track. Like, I'm very much about the data.

Like, I love all the creative stuff, but for me

there's no point doing any marketing events if

they're not working and it. And it's all right to

go. Actually, that was a lot of fun. We did it, we

tried it and then it's not. It's not got. Given us

the return that we wanted. We won't do that again.

But you. Sometimes you have to do trial and error.

And for me, the yacht days, I think they were a

massive hit. the direct business and the

visibility that we got from them and the

collaborators, you know, like, I think you really

stay in people's minds if you're doing things like

that as a business, you know, if, you know,

something different.

>> Wo0: Right.

>> Hillary Lewis: Does. Yeah, it's something different. It stands

out and it's, you know, it's also nice that it

wasn't completely centred around, like, alcohol

and drinking and like 100% to really get to know

each other, but in a very, like, relaxed way and

something beautiful.

>> Wo0: Yeah, you're really, really thoughtful, about,

your greater introduction. So we do an event

together called Elevate, don't we? And that's

where we met Bakker.

>> Hillary Lewis: That's where I met you guys.

>> Wo0: And, so I've done that with you. and, like when we

were planning it, you really, What was the word I

just used?

>> Hillary Lewis: Thoughtful. Yeah, I'm really thoughtful.

>> Buckers: Strategic.

>> Wo0: Yeah, strategic. It just sounds really working.

You're thoughtful and strategic. You like it,

don't you? I'm well, strategic.

>> Buckers: Hillary. Strategic Lewis.

>> Wo0: She is really good. But also like, not, not only

strategic on the way that, it's going to help them

and help you and help us, but also thoughtful and

who's going to get on with each other and make

friendships and those actual real bonds.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah.

>> Wo0: And like the London collective, Hillary and Ruby.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yes.

>> Wo0: work together. so when you get there, you get a

coloured lanyard buckers, with obviously your name

on.

>> Hillary Lewis: I'm immediately in. I want it.

>> Wo0: Yeah. Who, who like, you go and talk to. So you go

and talk to the same people with the same colour,

same M colour. And like, there's, there's probably

a, collaboration that can happen. Or you should

probably talk to this person.

>> Hillary Lewis: What a great idea.

>> Wo0: So fucking good.

>> Buckers: Because how, How Overwhelming. Does it feel to

walk into a networking event mixed or same gender?

Either way and no. Oh, all I need to do is. All

I've got to do is just go up to someone and start

talking to them. How hard could it be? And you

walk into the room when there's like 20 or 30

people there. How do you make a decision as to who

to go and talk to? Do you pick somebody who's

wearing like a nice jacket? Do you pick somebody

that looks a similar age to you? Do you pick

someone because based on whether they're at the

coffee bar or the biscuit table, like, how do you

decide who to go and talk to? But giving people

like that kind of initial nudge.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, it's just like, give them an.

>> Buckers: In to be like, oh, you appear to be a purple. I'm

a purple. Let's chat.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah.

>> Wo0: Shall I tell you how I'm so. So when I'm

networking. So I've got, little moo business

cards. They're mini cards. So there's like half

the height of a normal car, but the same width.

And they've all got my photos, different photos

on. So if I see, anybody talking, well, I'll

literally go around to everybody and I'll find

them out. I go, pick a card, any card, and they're

like, oh, there's a magician here or something.

They're m. Like, what's this? Okay, just pick a

card. And they pick a card and they look at it. I

go, well, that's nice. I turn it over and it's

just my details. I'm like, there you go. So I'll

literally can. I can literally just jump into any

conversation that anybody's having and then I can

gauge, like, if I'm vibing with them, like if

they're a dick or not. And then I'll go back and

talk to them later or talk to them there.

>> Hillary Lewis: The good thing with that, though, is that they

will have. If they've looked at. They don't know

that they're your photos, do they? When they're

looking through. So the good thing for you is the.

If you, if you can remember which photo they've

picked, it almost gives you. Because your photos

can be like, are very varied, aren't they? Like,

how they look. But if they've like, vibe, if

they've chosen that card, that actually says a lot

about them. Like, I love, like, I never thought

about that. Oh, well, this is what I mean. Like,

for me, I love the neuro, like marketing or the

like neuroscience Basically. And I just think the

way that the psychology, the way that the human

brain works is so clever, but actually there's so

many things that you give away as, And an

individual that you don't necessarily realise it's

all subconscious. But if you can tap into that. So

from your point of view, if you can tap into this,

if they're looking at a whole array of your photos

and they've picked one that's really resonated

with them, then that. That type of photo probably

says quite a lot about them as a person.

>> Buckers: Great conversation starter.

>> Wo0: So then if I'm doing so, then I could work out

which. Which, Which group to put them in on my

newsletter and send them newsletters with that

type of photo.

>> Hillary Lewis: Because you're saying.

>> Buckers: So she's bloody good, isn't she?

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, well, that. Well, that's how I would like.

If you can monitor it, you just kind of get. If

it's just a way of like.

>> Wo0: Well, I can monitor it, can't I? Because then I

could.

>> Hillary Lewis: I could technically, if you really QR.

>> Buckers: Code it to a specific type of newsletter.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah. So you then have like your. It's like your

zodiac sign of. Of you. And then you'd be like,

oh, there.

>> Wo0: Oh, my God. We've only got four minutes left and I

want to talk about this.

>> Buckers: Women are so clever.

>> Wo0: Women are so fucking clever. Hillary, you're the

best. right, Hillary, two questions before we go.

Okay, one question. Have you got a story, a

positive story of, the men?

>> Hillary Lewis: Oh, my husband's amazing.

>> Wo0: Positive. Tell me all about your husband. It's

really awkward because you left us alone. We were

just like, nah, I'm gonna go now.

>> Hillary Lewis: He'd had a very long day. Both of us had. But as

in, like, you and him. No. So, I met my husband. I

met my husband. We had a bit of a whirlwind

romance. I met my husband at Bognor Regis police

station, but it was at, a. It was an engagement

party, so it was fine. I wasn't arrested.

>> Wo0: Engagement party. A police station.

>> Hillary Lewis: They had a function room at the back. And I didn't

know we were set up technically as, like, a blind

date. Someone I went to school with took me to

meet Steve. And, Yeah, we. We met and we. Well,

actually, we had a very funny meet. Cute as well.

You probably. I'm like, this is such a. It's not a

boring story. I love it. But basically, I was told

my blood, my friend, my guy friend from school, he

was like, oh, come to this Party with me. My. His

fiance at the time, she was away for the weekend.

And he was like, I don't want to go on my home,

but there might be like a nice guy there for you.

And I was like, he was, oh. I was like, oh, okay.

And he picked me up and he was like, oh, yeah,

well, I've met, my mate Steve. I've. I've told him

all about you. You'll meet him tonight. So I was

like, oh, okay. When we get there, I was like, oh,

I'll go and get the drinks in because you drove. I

will go and buy the, like going, you know, buy the

bear. And I get to the bar and I'm only five foot

one and I turn around to like, check my, like see

where he sat, like, check what he wants. And the

guy behind me is like making fun of how short I am

to his mate over the other side of the thing. And

I was like, see how like a bit of a to and fro.

Get my drinks and I go and sit to the table and my

friend Paul, the one who set us up, I was sat with

him and he was like, oh. He looks up and he's

like, oh, look here, here comes Steve now. And I

was like, look to him. And I was like, oh, we've

already met. So I, who had been taking Nick at me,

but we hit it off straight away to spent all night

talking about dogs. And then, yeah, we got, we got

engaged a year later and then married two months

after that on like a. In a helicopter in Vegas at

the Strip at night, just the two of us, like very

well wound romance. And yeah, we've been married,

It'll be nearly 16 years now, but we. He has been

my absolute rock. So, like throughout our

marriage, he's been fantastic. We really struggled

to have our children. And he is like, he's been.

Always been so good with me with all like this

crazy, my next level of like crazy that I do. but

he's always been so bounding. Like, I, before he

got on here, I had an absolute flap because I'm

not using my usual laptop and I needed to download

Chrome. And I was just like, oh my God. He works

from home as well, so we're now like co workers.

We always laugh about that. so. And I literally

was like, oh my God. He's like, it's fine, calm

down, I'll sort it. And came in. He did it all. He

was like, right, can I go now? I was like, yes,

you can go now. But he's always there. And I think

that's what you need, isn't it? Someone in your

life that you can rely on that can calm you down

and be there when you need it. And don't get me

wrong, like, we drive each other crazy, but I

think if you've got someone in your corner like

that that will always have your back, even if you

had a major row or whatever when it comes to the

crunch, you know that they would be there to be

your technical support man and sort your. Sort you

act so you can go on your podcast.

>> Wo0: So like, oh, I love that. I ah, love that. love

you, Steve. Right, so the final question, Hillary,

you are a very well dressed lady, very well just

lady. I've taken photographs of you in the most

beautiful outfits. I would like you to describe in

as much detail as you can an item of clothing or

jewellery or shoes or anything like that that when

you put it on you feel powerful and amazing and

just makes you.

>> Hillary Lewis: Oh, that's like, ah, you know, what do you know

the thing for me, my true thing when I came. So

when Steve got in from work today, he said, you

put perfume on. I was like, yeah, I put perfume on

because I've got, I've got my podcast.

>> Buckers: Who's up?

>> Hillary Lewis: They're not gonna, it's not Smell of Vision. And I

was like, well, I know.

>> Buckers: That it's not the point.

>> Hillary Lewis: It just makes me feel so actually for me it's not

my wardrobe at all. Like, don't get me wrong, I

like to dress nicely. But for me to feel like that

whole thing and it is like, I would say it's like

a five point, like that sense of smell to feel

like, oh yeah, that's my, that's my power move is

actually a really nice expensive perfume. And even

me saying it like, I wouldn't have thought of that

if we had, if we hadn't had that conversation.

Because sometimes you just do it without like

instinctively. But I think on a day to day I don't

always necessarily put it on, but when I've got

like an important meeting or, or something, I'm

always like, and I like soak myself.

>> Wo0: I'm the same, I love that. And, and you know what?

That's the same with me. But I hadn't, it hadn't

occurred to me.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah.

>> Buckers: Have you got a signature scent or do you have

different ones for different kinds of vibes and

events?

>> Hillary Lewis: Well, yeah, so I have different ones. So I like

my, I'm, I'm, I love I always get it. Say it

wrong. Carolina Herrera, the good girl. You know

this. The stiletto in the shoe. The shoe. Yeah,

the shoe bottle. so if anyone wants to send me

any. No, I'm joking. But it's that thing. Yeah, I,

Yeah, I do have, like, different ones that I like,

but that's my, like. Well, the one I wear the

most, I would say.

>> Wo0: Hillary, thank you so much for coming on. I've

really enjoyed it. And you have been fucking

brilliant. As brilliant as everyone else.

>> Hillary Lewis: Thanks. I'll take it. I'm m just gonna. I'm just

gonna say thank you. That's what I'm trying to be

better at. Just going when I get a compliment.

Thank you very much.

>> Buckers: You're absolutely right. Thank you. And you're

welcome.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah, yeah.

>> Wo0: Or I know.

>> Hillary Lewis: Yeah.

>> Wo0: That's it for today's episode of Don't Tell Me

what to Wear or how to run my business. On the woo

pod with me, Wendy Gannon. This is more than just

a podcast. It's part of female 5 million. Head to

the link in the show notes to find out more about

our, movement to empower women. If this episode

spoke to you in any way, made you laugh, made you

cry, or maybe inspired you, share it with a friend

who needs to hear it. Leave us a rating and a

review, and let's keep this movement growing. And

while I've got you here, my photography is the way

that I fight back against the patriarchy. I

empower female founders with the confidence to be

themselves in their business, to really enjoy

their photo shoot and actually love their photos,

so then they can grow their business, increase

their prices, and get paid what they deserve. If

you want to work with me, drop me a message. All

the info you need to contact me is in the show

notes. Until next time, keep doing you. And

remember, you are part of something bigger. bye.