IWD 2021: Bay Burdett - Empowering Women in Innovation

As part of International Women’s Day, we interview Bay Burdett on her role at Bay’s Kitchen, her views on women in business and what a more gender-balanced world-view means to her.

Tell us about your role.

I’m Bay, Founder & CEO of Bay’s Kitchen. Bay’s Kitchen is a new Free From Food business, focusing on tasty products suitable for those with IBS, as well as those needing Gluten Free, Dairy Free and Vegan foods. 

As CEO I oversee all key areas of the business, but as we are also still a very small team, I get involved in the day-to-day sales and marketing, new product development, as well as finances and accounting.

What do you enjoy most about your job?  

I enjoy the variety of the role, one minute I am chatting to customers on Instagram and the next I am working on new product concepts.

It’s fast-paced, varied and fun! One of the best bits though is hearing from customers who love our products, where our business has actually made a really positive impact on their lives. It was my mission to make Low FODMAP and free from foods tastier and more convenient to all those who need them, so when we get feedback that we have achieved this, it’s amazing. 

And what are the most challenging aspects? 

Challenging aspects are when things go wrong! If we run out of stock we let customers down, or if a delivery is damaged it’s not a great impression for our customers. It’s also challenging running a fast-growing start-up business as you try to put all your time into the sales and marketing but you end up spending a lot of time managing budgets, cash flow and stock control – the balancing act is a real challenge! 

What 3 things do you think you need to progress as a woman in business?

1. Confidence – you must never think just because you’re a woman you can’t do something. The business world is for both men and women and you need to be as confident as you can in all situations – you deserve to be there!
2. Resilience – you need an insane amount of resilience. Stereotypically they say women take things to heart more, but to progress in business you need that resilience to just keep going and fighting even when times are tough and not take things too personally – remember business is business.
3. Just to be yourself – Being a woman in business can also have its advantages, so just be yourself. Whatever gender you are, people buy from people, so let your personality shine through.

What are the biggest challenges the future generation of women in business face?

Being treated equally is still one of the biggest challenges, though it is being addressed a lot more these days. This isn’t just around the gender pay gap but being treated equally no matter what industry their career is in or what job role or leadership position they have. 

What can the next generation bring to business that previous generations may not have?

Confidence and a voice. As equality becomes the norm, women need to have the confidence and resilience to succeed. They need to be able to have the confidence to have their ‘voice’ and be heard, they need to have their opinions and perspectives listened to and not fear rejection. 

What does a more gender-balanced world-view mean for you?

It means a better world! People should be treated equally and have equal opportunities, not just based on their gender but on their race, background, age and more. Within business, I feel better decisions are made when different opinions are put together to come to final decisions – and you get the most differing opinions when you have a diverse range of people making them!

How can we enable more women to take a place at the board-room table?

If businesses become more gender balanced then this may happen more naturally, with equal opportunities for their male and female staff to be promoted to leadership roles and eventually directors and a seat at the board-room. 

Businesses need to ‘refresh’ their boards, to allow long standing board members to retire, opening up vacancies which should be available equally for men and women. 

How can businesses evolve to be more gender-balanced?

It starts from the top – if the leaders of the business have a ‘gender equal’ view and tone then this will filter through the company. They need to lead by example and their employees will follow. A lot will happen through the recruitment process, so businesses need to ensure they hire for gender diversity.

What advice would you give to young women and men starting out in business today in context of promoting a more diverse world-view?

You need to have the mindset of gender equality, and realise that men need women and women need men. There are some tasks, situations, challenges in life which men will deal with better, but there are also an equal amount of tasks, situations, challenges in life which women will deal with better than men, so we need to work together and not compete. Play to everyone’s strengths, allow everyone to have a say and work together and the world will be a much happier and equal place!

What women inspire you and why?

My mum – my mum has always been an inspiration to me! She raised 3 daughters who have all got successful careers and happy lives. She built up a business with my father and never gave up. She’s where I get my positive outlook on life, as well as confidence and resilience. 

Karren Brady – Karen is an inspiration to many women in business. She has so much passion, admirable business instinct and acumen, huge amounts of ambition and confidence, yet she seems so lovely and approachable too! She has succeeded in a male dominated industry from such a young age… how could anyone not be inspired by her!

Deborah Meaden – Again she’s an inspiration as such a successful business woman and entrepreneur. She launched her first business at such a young age and has been highly successful since. She coaches lots of other entrepreneurs through her role with Dragons Den and she is very passionate about health and the environment which I admire.