Kate Craig-Wood

With Nick providing the technical skills and Kate the managerial expertise, the brother-sister duo makes an entrepreneurial dream team.

Memset provides the physical hardware that hosts many popular websites. The company is now one of the UK’s leading Web & IT hosting providers and won PC Pro’s Best Web Host award three years running.

Kate campaigns for a number of causes, including environmental issues, equality for women and improved care for the transgendered. “I am one of the the lucky few transwomen who could afford proper treatment and therefore look normal and am thus able to lead a full life,” says Kate. “I recently told my story in the Sunday Times and Financial Times in the hope of challenging preconceptions about the transgendered.”

Kate’s top tips for entrepreneurs

• Write a business plan and do a financial model (a spreadsheet) to make sure that your idea will make money and that your business is scalable.
• Make use of services like Business Link for information, advice and assistance.
• Be prepared to earn almost nothing for 1-2 years. The biggest cost to starting a business is your time, and it’s normally unrealistic to get a wage right away.
• Be really frugal early on; don’t take on any overheads like offices unless absolutely necessary.
• When it’s time to start recruiting, use your network of friends and family - they might know someone suitable.

Click here to read Kate’s personal biography.