Femme & Fortune

Charlotte Baroukh is a chartered accountant and tax expert at Pie, the UK's first free tax app. She has built one of the most engaged finance communities on Instagram, breaking down the tax rules that most people were never taught.In this episode, Charlotte and Ayesha get into why your salary will never be enough to build real wealth, the tax mistakes that are costing self-employed women thousands, and why equity ownership changes everything.They also get honest about the realities of corporate life, the politics nobody warns you about, what it actually means to go part time after having children, and why bigger doesn't always mean better.In this episode:Why significant wealth comes from ownership, not salaryThe number one mistake sole traders make with their moneyHow to legally reduce your tax bill at any income levelPensions, ISAs and the basics that nobody taught usFiscal drag - what it is and why it matters to youWhy Charlotte left Deloitte and never looked back.Charlotte Baroukh on Instagram: @tax.queen.cJoin Wealth Circles: https://ayeshaofori.com/membership/Follow Ayesha on Instagram: @ayesh.ofori

What happens when you give up everything for love and it still isn't enough?In this episode of Femme & Fortune, Ayesha sits down with Nathalie Lethbridge, a powerhouse who built an extraordinary career across three continents, rose to senior management at Disney, advised corporations on multi-million pound deals and still found herself starting over financially in her 50s.Nathalie opens up about the moments that changed everything: being told she wasn't worthy of an LSE education because she was a girl, leaving behind a VP career for love, surviving a brain tumour with two children under three, and walking away from a 25-year marriage with far less than she'd built.But this isn't a story about loss. It's a story about what happens when you finally stop letting other people define your worth, financially & otherwise.In this episode we cover:Why high-earning women are still getting financially left behind in divorce.What nobody tells you about UK divorce law & your pension.The financial mistakes Nathalie wishes she'd avoided earlierWhy compound interest wasn't explained to her but was explained to her brothersHow she rebuilt her mindset around money, success & independenceWhy fear of failure is the biggest thing standing between you & your potentialThis episode is for you if:You're a high-achieving woman who has never quite got to grips with your own finances. If you've ever prioritised everyone else's financial security over your own, or if you're starting over & wondering where to begin, this one is essential listening.Nathalie Lethbridge is an international business adviser working at the forefront of tech, innovation & the cultural & creative sectors.#FemmeAndFortune #WomenAndMoney #FinancialIndependence #WomenInBusiness #DivorceAndMoney #FinancialLiteracy #WomenEmpowerment #MoneyMindset #FemaleFounders #startingover

Most people read picture books at age 8. Yvonne Bajela was reading the Financial Times.Growing up on a council estate in Mitcham, South London, Yvonne's father made sure of that. That early conditioning set her on a path to Goldman Sachs, strategy consulting, her own startup, and eventually a decade-long career in venture capital at some of Europe's most respected funds, including Local Globe.Now she's backing herself. She's raising her own VC fund and betting on the founders she believes will reshape entire industries.In this episode we get into:What VCs are actually looking for in founders (and why obsession matters more than experience)Why 7 out of 10 startups go to zero and how to find the one that doesn'tThe real reason women are underrepresented in startup investing and what needs to changeHow to start angel investing even if you're not a professional investorWhy Yvonne backed Marshmallow when two founders with zero insurance experience walked into a WeWork officeThe power of household diversification when building wealth as a coupleWhether you're curious about startup investing, thinking about backing founders, or want to understand how venture capital actually works in the UK, this episode is for you.If you found this useful, subscribe and follow Femme and Fortune on Instagram for more conversations about women and wealth.

What does it actually take to build a 30 million business and then sell it?In this episode of Femme & Fortune, Ayesha Ofori sits down with Thea Green MBE, founder of Nails Inc, to talk about the journey from starting a company at 23 with 250K to selling it to private equity in 2024.Thea was working as a fashion editor, earning 11K a year in London, when she spotted a gap no one else was seeing. What followed was not a fast rise. It was decades of building, scaling, nearly breaking, and figuring out how to make money in an industry that looked glamorous but ran on razor-thin margins.They talk about why the early years were so much harder than Thea expected, how she raised investment, the pressure that came with it, scaling into Sephora and major global retailers, building a business while raising a family, and what it was really like to finally sell.This is the version of the story founders rarely tell.Femme & Fortune is a podcast about how women really build wealth, the decisions, the trade-offs, and the conversations we are not having enough of.New episodes every week. Subscribe so you do not miss one.Key topics: building a business, female founders, wealth building, entrepreneurship UK, scaling a brand, founder journey, selling a business, work life balance, women in business

In this episode of Femme & Fortune, Ayesha Ofori sits down with Vivien Wong, co founder of Little Moons, the mochi ice cream brand that went from a homemade idea to a global business.Vivien shares how she started with a simple ice cream machine at home while still working in finance, and how she turned that into one of the UK’s most recognisable food brands.This is not a “perfect plan” story. It is about resourcefulness, problem solving, and building slowly over time.We cover:• Growing up in a family business and how it shaped her mindset• Why she didn’t need a completely original idea to win• Building Little Moons without outside funding for over a decade• Landing Yo! Sushi as a first major customer• The reality of scaling a business from small batches to £10m+ revenue• What it felt like to finally take money off the table• Why making money is not the same as building wealth• How she learned to invest after her exit• The biggest mistakes women make when building wealthThis episode is a real look at what it actually takes to build something meaningful and profitable over time.—💬 What stood out most to you from Vivien’s story?🔔 Subscribe for more conversations on money, mindset and building real wealth—About Vivien WongVivien Wong is the co founder of Little Moons, a global mochi ice cream brand stocked in major retailers and restaurants worldwide. She built the business from scratch with her brother, scaling it over 15+ years before bringing in private equity investment.About Ayesha OforiAyesha Ofori is a former Goldman Sachs Executive Director and the founder of Propelle. She has managed over £500m for ultra high net worth clients and now focuses on helping women build wealth with confidence.—#FemmeAndFortune #LittleMoons #Entrepreneurship #WomenInBusiness #BuildingWealth

In this episode of Femme & Fortune, Ayesha Ofori sits down with Lamide Elizabeth, former investment banker turned founder, investor and creator of Building Wealth Without Borders.Lamide didn’t follow a traditional path.She grew up in Hackney, got herself into private school on a scholarship, went on to LSE, and started her career in investment banking. But early on, she realised something most people miss.A high salary doesn’t mean you’re building wealth.In this conversation, she breaks down the decisions that changed everything. From questioning the corporate path, to building assets, investing in property, and using social media to create real income and opportunity.They talk about:Why salary alone won’t make you wealthyThe difference between income and assetsHow she got into property in her early 20sWhy living at home can accelerate wealth buildingThe biggest mistake women make when it comes to investingAnd what building wealth actually looks like behind the scenesThis isn’t a conversation about outcomes.It’s about how it really happens.—About Ayesha Ofori:Ayesha is a former Investment Banker and Private Wealth Adviser who managed over £500m for ultra high net worth clients. She now focuses on helping women build wealth through better decisions, access and strategy.—Subscribe for more conversations on how women actually build wealth.#FemmeAndFortune #WealthBuilding #WomenAndMoney #Investing #PropertyInvesting

Maxine Laceby didn’t grow up around business.She grew up on a council estate, left school at 16, and built her career in a completely different world before ever thinking about starting something of her own.She didn’t start Absolute Collagen until her 50s.No background in beauty.No experience building a company.Today, it’s a £42M brand.In this episode of Femme & Fortune, she sits down with Ayesha Ofori, a former investment banker, to talk about how it actually happened.Not just the outcome.But everything that led up to it.Her upbringing.The early parts of her career.What pushed her to start later in life.And then what came next.The mistakes.The moments she nearly didn’t do it.The decisions she had to make when there wasn’t a clear path.Because building something like this isn’t a straight line.And it’s not just about what you achieve.It’s about how you think, how you handle uncertainty, and how you keep going when it would be easier not to.----------Femme & Fortune is a podcast about how women build wealth.Not just what they achieve.But how they get there.🔔 Subscribe for more conversations like this.