Lemonade Leaders

After reaching breaking point, Becci McEvoy rebuilt her life and business from the ground up. In this episode, she shares how leaving a 13-year career, navigating her husband’s mental health crisis, and being diagnosed with PMDD led her to create Be Heard Socials - a business that champions balance over burnout. Becci opens up about redefining success, building flexibility into her work, and helpi...

In this episode, we speak with Soni Panda, founder of By Soni Panda x, an inclusive hosiery brand. We explore what really happens when the plan falls apart, and how the unexpected detour can lead to something far better. From the heartbreak of a dream that didn’t launch to the joy of building a purpose-led fashion brand from the ground up, this conversation is all about resilience, reinvention and...

When a Cancer Diagnosis Interrupts Your First Year of Business Starting a business is challenging enough, but what happens when life throws you a diagnosis that changes everything? In this episode, Riannon speaks to Tom Pratt, a founder who discovered he had cancer just six months after launching his company, Albert Road Consulting. He shares how facing illness reshaped his perspective on work, su...

From Anxiety to Awareness: The Mindful Generation Story When Laura became a mum, she expected sleepless nights, but not the wave of anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and overwhelm that followed.  What started as a personal struggle soon became her purpose. In this episode, Laura shares how she turned her own experience of postnatal anxiety into The Mindful Generation, a business helping parents underst...

From Honeymoon to Haircare Hero: A Journey from Redundancy to Curly Success When a dream honeymoon ended with redundancy, most people would have taken time to recover — but for this week’s Lemonade Leaders guest, it became the catalyst for change. In this episode, Riannon chats with the founder of a feel-good haircare brand reshaping the curly hair industry. She shares how being laid off days afte...

After years of juggling a high-pressure marketing career and family life, Gemma Sewell hit breaking point. What followed, panic attacks, anxiety, and a powerful wake-up call, became the catalyst for a complete life shift. Now a transformational coach, Gemma helps others move away from burnout and towards a life that feels free, balanced, and true to who they are. In this episode, we talk about red...

After losing her grandmother, Brynn O’Connell channelled her grief into creating Dauntless - a hosiery brand designed to finally fit tall women. Drawing on her background in data science, Brynn rebuilt the traditional sizing system to celebrate real bodies and redefine what comfort looks like. In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , Brynn shares how loss inspired her to start again, the lessons she’...

What if the thing you thought made you different was actually something almost every woman experiences? In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , we explore how one founder turned a common yet unspoken issue, breast asymmetry, which affects 94% of women, into a purpose-led business transforming women’s confidence. Kate Taylor is the founder of Evenly, a supportive community that unites women and provi...

What happens when life throws you two huge curveballs - redundancy on maternity leave and a late ADHD diagnosis? In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , Riannon Palmer sits down with marketing strategist Sophie Griffiths , who shares how these moments shaped her journey from corporate life to building a thriving business on her own terms. Sophie opens up about: The shock of being made redundant whil...

In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , I’m joined by Tamryn Dicks , founder of Pharsyde Solutions , a company on a mission to stop burnout from destroying small businesses. Tamryn’s story is raw and real. Her own brutal burnout cost her health, happiness, and almost her marriage and business. But it also sparked the mindset shifts that rebuilt her life and shaped her mission: helping business owner...

In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , I sit down with Kheyla Buchanan, founder and CEO of Mother Nature’s Recipes. Kheyla shares how her own breastfeeding struggles inspired her to become an NHS peer supporter and create a brand that offers herbal teas, resources, and community support for women at every stage of life. We explore the taboos around motherhood, from the unspoken realities of birth a...

Claire Hill’s childhood was shaped by poverty, loss and responsibility beyond her years. After losing her dad at just eight years old, she helped care for her siblings while her mum faced mental health challenges. Despite the odds, she found a love of learning, a flair for business, and the resilience to keep moving forward. In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , Claire shares her journey from grow...

Two burnouts. One health scare. And a decision that changed everything. In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , I speak with the founder of The Lifestyle VA , Mel Maw, who shares how her career in the music industry and later as PA to a global CEO pushed her to the edge - twice. After her spleen was removed following a major health scare, she knew she couldn’t keep working the same way. What started...

For 10 years, Louise Duncum thrived in the creativity of designing clothes for High Street brands, but something was missing: a deeper connection with the women wearing her designs. After enduring one toxic boss too many, she decided life was too short to stay unhappy. Retraining as a personal stylist, she launched Weiz Styles, helping ambitious women align their wardrobes with their potential. In...

Darya Simanovich arrived in the UK with just £300 and no English - 20 years later, she’s built 15 businesses. In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , we dive into her journey of resilience: 10 failures, 5 successes, and 1 exit. We talk about why failure is a muscle, the “100 Coffee Strategy” every founder should know, and how motherhood gave her the courage to take risks. An inspiring reminder that...

What happens when your body forces you to stop and re-evaluate everything? For Victoria Harman, a sudden life-threatening neurological illness and redundancy while on medical leave became the unexpected turning point that pushed her to follow her long-held dream. In this episode of Lemonade Leaders , Victoria shares her journey from senior leadership roles at global brands like Levi’s and TikTok S...

When Caroline Marshall was made redundant just months after becoming a mum — at a company that didn’t even have a maternity policy — she faced an uncertain future. Burnout, financial pressure, and a toxic “tech bro” culture could have ended her career. Instead, she turned her skills into a business that now supports dozens of women across the UK and beyond. In this candid conversation, Caroline sh...

Seven days after giving birth, Funmi Lawal’s world changed forever. A sudden stroke left her fighting for her life and facing the possibility that she might never walk or speak again. But against all odds, she relearned how to walk, endured years of dialysis, survived a kidney transplant, and went on to create Klip Knix, an award-winning adaptive underwear brand restoring dignity and independence...

Lemonade Leaders is the podcast that dives into the real, raw, and remarkable stories of founders, changemakers, and everyday leaders who’ve faced life’s toughest challenges and turned them into something extraordinary. Hosted by Riannon Palmer, founder of Lem-uhn, each episode is a candid conversation that goes beyond the glossy headlines. You’ll hear about the moments that nearly broke them, the...