First female boss for Midlands Chamber
AWEST Midlands chamber commerce has appointed first female president. Julie Cunningham has taken up the top role at Black Country Chamber, replacing Adrian Wright.
She is a chartered management accountant whose career includes spells with Midland Recruitment Solutions and Poundland and has also spent six years as a selfemployed financial consultant, working on projects for household names such as the Co-op, Holland & Barrett and M&S.
Ms Cunningham is currently director of wholesale finance for retail group AF Blakemore, which runs Spar stores across the country, and has expertise in defining, implementing and managing strategy.
She said: “I am delighted to be taking on the position as president of the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, especially given that I am the first female to have been appointed to the role. I want to work closely with members to raise the profile of our local chamber on both a regional and national level.
“The Black Country Chamber of Commerce has ambitions moving forward for first-class business support so this is a very exciting time to be part of the organisation.” of it
Mr Wright said: “I have worked very closely with Julie over the past 12 months and she shows real care and passion for the chamber.
“Julie has fantastic knowledge and experience in the business environment which will prove to be invaluable to the chamber moving forward.”