Karen had had the idea a couple of years earlier, having struggled to find a networking group that had everything she needed. A self employed business adviser, from a corporate team background, Karen felt a little isolated and was looking for support. Now working independently, knowledge and learning were also very important, having to be ‘every department’ in her own business.

After trying many different networking meetings and groups there seemed to be only one solution, to create a network with all of the things she was looking for, after all if Karen had struggled to find the right solution, then maybe others had too? This new network was to be welcoming and friendly, relaxed but professional, structured but not regimented. It was to be a place to connect and meet others but have a focussed learning opportunity too.

The learning opportunities were to be decided by the people attending, as they were the ones that knew best what knowledge and skills they needed. The network was to be inclusive to all women, affordable and have an open seat policy where there were opportunities from people running the same or similar businesses to others. The network would also be affordable and accessible to people whether they were thinking of starting a business, just starting out or established. In addition people who were in education or employment would also be welcome to attend, as Karen felt strongly that there was much to learn from one another. There would be a membership club that was optional rather than compulsory and people would be able to come along as life and business allowed and not be under pressure to attend religiously.

Having created a framework of how the network was going to be run it was also very important to Karen that the core values at the heart of the network were reflective of her own. Everything about the network would be done with honesty and integrity. People would be treated equally and with respect, just as she would want to be treated herself.

With the planning and outline decided, the next step was to create a visual identity for this new network, that Karen had named Socially Shared Business Support Network. Having worked on many client projects together, and knowing the quality of her work, Karen introduced Rebecca Jones of Glory Design to her concept and a new partnership began. Through conversations and working together, Rebecca could clearly see that there was a gap in the market and this type of network would be one that she herself would want to attend. From here onwards a formal working partnership was formed and Socially Shared was launched in March 2015. In 2018, with the network starting to expand and after three fabulous years working in partnership, Karen and Rebecca decided to part company.

Rebecca had been a victim of the success she had had from networking and was busier than ever with her graphic design work. This was where her heart and passion truly lay and where she wanted to dedicate her time. Karen completely respected and appreciated Rebecca’s decision and although she would miss their working together, she became sole owner of the network.

However, the network had grown too large for one person to manage, so Karen remodelled the delivery of the meetings and created an associate team. This team was created with people she trusted and with the experience, skills and knowledge to ensure the success of the network. The network continued on with the associate delivery model until the pandemic hit in 2020, when Socially Shared paused all face to face meetings and moved purely to deliver online.

Having hosted a number of online meetings via Zoom previously, this transition was quite a smooth one. However, the regular monthly meetings were halted when lockdown was introduced and we switched to hosting free weekly social catch ups on a Monday morning. These meetings saw tears of frustration, sorrow, joy and laughter over the coming months and were known to many as ‘the weekly sanity check.’ Once we had come out of the pandemic, it felt that things were at another point of natural change.

Karen had ambitions to further grow the number of monthly meetings to more areas across the Midlands and to do that, it would mean recruiting more help from associates or changing the delivery model once more. Having explored franchising models, the idea of bringing people in that didn’t know Socially Shared didn’t sit comfortably and so time was taken to find an alternative approach. Having realised more so than ever before, that it was the people within the community that made Socially Shared the success it was, Karen looked at an option to grow outwards and expand further, through people she already knew from within the network. In September 2022, the new Area Host Model was introduced.

Today the Socially Shared Business Support Network still operates with an Area Host model, a blended agreement with individuals hosting meetings and promoting Socially Shared within a set geographical area. The Area Hosts have shared values, have the support of each other and the wider team, and of course Karen, as their leader. The story over these first ten years has been a changing one, as successful businesses often are. What the next ten years will hold, no one knows for certain, but they are likely to be bright and ambitious with further expansion planned across the UK.