The Welsh Bag Lady to meet the Princess Royal

Jean Bartlett founder and MD of BagLadyit.com Ltd, the leading online directory and international trading portal for women owned businesses, will be attending the high profile conference, to be hosted in Scotland, of the World Association of Women Entrepreneurs. She will be representing Welsh women in business in her capacity as the Vice President of the British Association of Women Entrepreneurs(BAWE-Wales)when she meets HRH Princess Anne.

There is a huge interest in 'women entrepreneurship' right across the globe with women owned businesses now accounting for a third of all businesses, with women starting 100,000 new businesses each year in the UK alone. Women own over a third of UK businesses with a turnover of 1 million, almost half of businesses run by women are in retail, leisure and personal services sector.

According to an authoritative study by the research company Datamonitor, there are now 2,99,300 female millionaires compared to 2,71,700 male, and unlike in the past when most female millionaires were elderly, now women are becoming millionaires at a much younger age. They have started to prosper in their own right, for many opt for independent businesses. The Centre for Economic and Business Research suggests that there are 425,000 millionaires in Britain, and there's now more women millionaires than men.

Business ownership has elevated millions of women around the world from poverty, in one region in India an astounding 8 million women are now able to sustain themselves and their children through their own 'enterprising endeavours'. However, there still is much to be done and governments and organisations are looking at various ways to support women enterprises, particularly in the developing countries and looking at ways to encourage global trading.

The Welsh based technology company,BagLadyit.com, offers online services and trading opportunities for women business owners and a host of online support. In a relatively short space of time the dot.com company has accumulated clients in over 70 countries and thousands of women owned businesses with combined turnovers running into billions who daily use the company's online services.

With women from country-to-country increasingly using the internet for both personal and professional use, with more women than ever now shopping online buying services and products, booking holidays, using the internet for research and to chat, with 39% of all web sites owned or managed by women, the internet certainly is having the predicted revolutionary effect for women.

Women now account for approx 52% percent of the worlds population. They are an important component in the workforce, as well as purchasers of all types of goods and services. Women now influence 75% of all purchases. World-wide women represent the main source of income for 30% of homes. In the US for example, 55% of US female workers now contribute half or more than half of the household income, in Europe 59% female workers contributing half or more than half of the household income which means the stereotype is being shattered, that men maintain the women and children.

"...Much of the credit of how much easier it is now for women in business must go to organisations such as the British Associated of Women Entrepreneurs(BAWE), these 'first ladies of business'. The women who have over the decades fiercely fought for change and who have done much to elevate the status of women in business in the UK and abroad, breaking down barriers, stereotypes and changing attitudes towards women in business.

When you have self made women, multimillionaires employing thousands of staff who started with nothing, with two kids in tow, plus the cat, dog and budgie, then it really is a slap in the face to those who often see women as 'playing at it', or simply seeing them setting up in business to earn a little bit of 'pin money', which is very patronising.

Touching base with BAWE's "movers and shakers", the first ladies to be let into Lloyds, women entrepreneurs who are amongst the richest in the country through their own business endeavours, then it certainly does serve to motivate women into believing , yes, anything is possible the sky really is the limit..." Jean Bartlett MD, BagLadyit.com Ltd.