Shropshire business wins backing of former Dragon Theo
A Shropshire-based small business has received a boost from retail entrepreneur and former Dragon's Den star Theo Paphitis.
Helen Edwards, who is a self-publishing consultant, tweeted Theo about her business during ‘Small Business Sunday’, a competition run on Twitter and Instagram.
And she was one of six weekly winners to gain a retweet from Theo to more than £500,000 Twitter followers.
The weekly initiative, set up by the former Dragon in 2010, now has over 3,500 #SBS winners and supports small businesses in the UK.
Helen said: “I’ve only been in business for a couple of years and have been building up my client list.
"It was great to have support from Theo and for him to help spread the word about what I do.”
In February 2023, Helen attended the #SBS winners’ event, which is held annually in Birmingham.
“The event was amazing," she said. "There was such a positive vibe and I left feeling inspired.
"Now I’m hoping to help even more people to self-publish their books. I’ve self-published 11 of my own books
to-date via Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, and I’ve also undertaken a developmental editing fiction course.
"I self-published my own books on a budget, which was when I realised that there’s a market for affordable self-publishing services. Some companies charge thousands of pounds to self-publish a book on a client’s behalf.
"Many people can’t afford that. I know I can’t. You can self-publish your book yourself via Amazon for free, but not everyone has the time to do it; sometimes they want a helping hand and that's where I come in."
For more on Helen's business, visit www.helen-edwards.co.uk
