Erin is buzzing after business wins award
AWOMAN who started her own business as a way to fit work around her disability and chronic pain has seen it win an award.
Erin Buck, 47, from Bollington, founded Bizzybee Virtual and Social Media Assistant Services four years ago.
She says her ‘life changed course’ aged 40 when what started as a simple back twinge blew up into a serious problem.
Erin had suffered the first in a series of ruptured disks and underwent several major operations leaving her with a dropped foot through nerve damage.
She was forced to give up her job at a school, needed a wheelchair and still requires a foot brace to walk.
It meant her career needed a change of direction so she set up Bizzybee.
Erin has now been named Virtual Assistant of the Year 2023 at the Digital Women Awards.
She said: “It left me depressed, suffering from anxiety and feeling I had no purpose in life; I was useless and couldn’t contribute in any way to my family or society, as I had limitations.
“Then I decided that this was not true; I just had to find a way that I could move forward. I saw it as an opportunity to reinvent myself.
“So, drawing from my love for technology and social media, I ventured into a new career as a virtual assistant and founded Bizzybee.”
Erin’s business is primarily aimed at supporting freelance workers, entrepreneurs and other small businesses.
The services she offers include email organisation, customer service, content creation, social media management and strategic brainstorming.
The business was started at the beginning of the Covid crisis, which meant virtual services were in demand - so long as Erin had the necessary skills.
She said: “I had no experience in business or marketing, but I worked hard, upskilled, used my life experience to be understanding and showed up as much as I could.
“I started my business with the aim of creating a job for myself that would fit around my disability and chronic pain and give me a purpose. So to be recognised by other women in the digital business world is an honour.
“I choose my hours, choose whether to lie down while I work or from different upright places if I want. It is hard work but it is worth it, I have shown myself that my limitations don’t stop or define me.”