The KZN Margaret Hirsch Woman in Business Achiever of the Year Gala Evening was held at Sibaya Casino recently.  Margaret Hirsch, who started the competition after winning several awards herself, said that she could see how much of an impact the acknowledgement of her own success had been and wanted to see more women in this position. "Awards give credibility to one's business and as women, we tend to shy away from being in the limelight.  We also tend not to be assertive enough. This was my way of encouraging women to put themselves and their businesses in the spotlight. The winners and runners-up are people who not only run successful businesses, but are making a difference to the lives of others
in all the areas in which they live and ultimately, the lives of people in our beautiful country, South Africa," she said.

The overall winner for the KZN region, Vino Govender owns her own engineering consultancy and has overcome huge obstacles to get where she is today. She has also helped transform the lives of people
with financial constraints in the community, having started a hamper distribution project.

Runners-up, Sue Barnes, who runs the Girls with Dignity Project and Kerry Dell from Your Earth Solutions and EarthBeat, have through their businesses made a huge positive impact on the lives of others.

Sue Barnes was announced as the Woman in Business Achiever of the year in Hillcrest. She is the owner and creator of Subz pads, a washable sanitary pad and panties that last up to five years, and were created specifically for under privileged girls in southern Africa who were not attending school when they had their period.

Guest speaker at the Awards evening was Dr Michelle Potgieter, Samsung Electronics Director of Communications and Corporate Marketing.  She said that competitions like these help boost women's
confidence in their attempts to climb the ladder in the corporate world, start their own businesses, and generally make a success of their lives. She emphasised the importance of "creating a story worth telling"
in one's life.