When your one-person business begins to take off, the emotions come flooding in: a burst of relief, a swell of pride, and an equal dose of excitement and trepidation. Now you have enough work coming in to bring someone else on board; a little while later you can afford a third person; then another role is added… suddenly you are the managing director, line manager, HR, finance, IT helpdesk and wellbeing support for your team, while also keeping on doing the day job. Sound familiar?
It resonates with Jen Richley. She started CopperHouse Events in 2021 armed with an idea, some contacts and 15 years of experience in events management.
“I was made redundant during lockdown from my previous role in an event agency, so I was looking for my next opportunity. I thought, ‘why don’t I see if I can do it on my terms?’” she explains. “I set up a tiny desk in the corner of my son’s nursery, came up with a logo and went for it.”
Business scale-up at speed
Richley had no financial backing, so at first she worked three jobs: as a packer in the evenings, as a receptionist at the weekends, and during the week she devoted every spare hour to setting up her business. Within three months, she had to give up her extra jobs because her business was snowballing.
“I spoke to everyone I was connected with about the vision I had, focusing on relationships that were built on trust. One of the first enquiries I had was for a venue for 10 people. I danced round the nursery with sheer joy!”
Eight months later, CopperHouse Events was turning a profit, and in 2022, Richley took on her first member of staff. “We started to build the business to offer full-service event management as well as venue sourcing. By 2023, I was able to take on another two people – we were flying!”
Learning to lead
The company’s focus expanded to include international events, which now make up 35% of its work. Richley was also becoming increasingly aware that she’d never managed a team before, so she had to go on a steep learning curve.
“The business accelerated quickly and I wasn’t prepared for the leadership aspect at all,” she admits. “I’ve had to learn to toughen up a bit. I have always been assertive when it comes to dealing with challenges for a client, but internally I found it very difficult in the beginning, for example saying to someone they can’t have that day off because it didn’t work for the business needs. I wanted everyone to like me rather than face having the difficult conversations, but actually what I have found is that the team has more respect and can move forward more rapidly when I am firm and act with clarity.”
“It’s so important as a leader to take a step back to consider, ‘did I show up as the best version of myself? How could I have done things differently, and what would the outcomes have been?’”
Richley has mentors who have helped her appreciate the value of self-reflection. “It’s so important as a leader to take a step back to consider, ‘did I show up as the best version of myself? How could I have done things differently, and what would the outcomes have been?’ It is something I encourage the team to do as well. It’s not about criticism, but rather considering how we can grow, because I believe there is no change without challenge.”
Turn it around
One of the most frustrating things, Richley says, is dealing with other people’s preconceptions and prejudgements.
“There’s still a lot of unconscious bias in boardrooms and in society. As a mother and CEO of a growing company, I have been underestimated at times. That used to really frustrate me but now I see it as a superpower because it gives you something very valuable – an opportunity to show up with everything you have to prove that you can create something incredible.”
Richley has also had to learn how to deal with her own feelings of imposter syndrome, and turn it around into trusting her own abilities. She is conscious of allowing her team members the space to learn leadership skills. “For our most recent hire, our account director managed the interviews and made the decision about who would join our team. She is also going to act as a mentor, which will help them both gain new skills. This is one of the things of which I am most proud – seeing the team grow and develop.”
Double delight
“When I hear them talk about the company and see how they represent it, I feel so proud of them, and of our passion and integrity as a team”
Within the past 12 months, the CopperHouse team has doubled from four to eight. Richley is delighted that she has people queuing up to join – a reflection of the culture she has worked hard to create.
“I want the team to feel ownership of the company. When I hear them talk about the company and see how they represent it, I feel so proud of them, and of our passion and integrity as a team.
“I am forever grateful for them! They represent everything I wanted from this business of mine.”
This article first appeared in the winter 2025 issue of Edge. You can read it here
