Amandine Tanefo: Why I Am Proof That We All Rise By Lifting Others

My name is Amandine and I live in Cheshire, England. My mission is to empower female entrepreneurs by giving them the website and tools they need to grow a successful business online. I create WordPress themes and share my know-how so that women build their own website quickly and easily without any coding knowledge required.

I’ve been running my successful WordPress website theme design business, Launch & Sell, for over three years. However, let’s be honest for a second. I know how discouraging it can be to read about other people’s success, so I make sure I’m really transparent about my journey to becoming an entrepreneur.

I regularly share my knowledge and honest experience with other female business owners, because I feel like realistic advice is far more helpful to an aspiring entrepreneur than seeing another “overnight six figure success” story on their social media feed.

Life Before Becoming A Female Entrepreneur

I was born and raised in Paris to parents from Italy and Cameroon. I studied Business and Industrial Engineering at university, which was very orientated towards working for big corporations. After getting my masters, I went directly into job as a data scientist and expansion project manager.

It wasn’t until I found myself caught up in the corporate world that I began to realize I had not found my place. The nine to five routine, the never ending meetings, the ladder game: it just wasn’t for me. I craved more freedom and for the chance to really make an impact on people.

After meeting my partner, a successful entrepreneur in his own right, I got a taste for life outside of the cubicle. In just a few months of mulling it over in my head, I made the decision to quit my well paid, secure job and strike out on my own in the world of freelancing. Looking back, this bold choice still seems a bit crazy, but armed with a small amount of savings and a burning desire to help others, I was unstoppable.

Oh, and did I mention that I had moved from France to the UK at this point?

Not only did I quit my stable career, I made the decision to start my business in a language that wasn’t my native one.

Business Baby Steps

With my tech skills as my secret weapon, I threw myself into life as a freelance web designer.

I naively thought that because I had something to give, business would come. Let me tell you, the learning curve was steep as I realized that marketing is everything to a small business. You may be offering the best service in the world, but if no one knows about you, you won’t get anywhere.

After about a year and a half of trying to be all things to all people, designing websites one by one, I had a revelation.

I knew that one of the first, critical steps for female entrepreneurs was to launch an amazing, powerful website to help them stand out online. The trouble was, people were short on time and overwhelmed by the thought of coding a website themselves.

Instead of developing sites for clients one-by-one I decided to create super user-friendly templates targeted to specific niches (business coaches, life coaches, influencers and event organizers). My aim was for my customers to use my themes to create the beautiful, professional website they needed to grow their business online.

We Rise By Lifting Others

As soon as I refocused on my why – providing female entrepreneurs with the tools and expertise they needed to get their dream website – the change was amazing. My business grew and I am able to make a positive impact on the lives and businesses of girl bosses all over the world.

I know it sounds cheesy but nothing makes me happier or prouder than to see what my customers have achieved with my website themes; how much it has helped them get out there and start their business online. I feel like I have made a real difference to their life!

The last three years have been a challenging journey but I am more determined than ever to think of new ways to help more women be successful in their business.

Being honest about the mistakes I’ve made and what I’ve learned along the way is just one way I hope to empower and inspire other women to start, scale and maintain their goals.

Looking for stunning, powerful themes to transform your website? Take a look at Launch & Sell’s WordPress themes or get in touch to find out more information.