Bianca Miller exposes diversity flaws within the business world

BIANCA Miller spoke about starting her own business and shared her branding tips with KU students at her workshop as part of the Do More campaign.

As the finalist of the BBC’s show the Apprentice, Miller built a new business called Bianca Miller London offering tights and hold-ups available in eight different nude colours.

Miller said: “I went to a department store, spoke to a buyer and asked if they would be interested and they said they do not understand. ‘Do women of colour buy tights? Do not all white women want to be tanned?’

“That was the most shocking thing. We were in 2015 and people didn’t see that diversity and didn’t look at their clients of different ethnicities, which want the colour to suit them. That was the most confusing thing to me.”

Miller spoke passionately about what having her own business meant. As it was the only way she would get up every day and put in the extra hours, even on weekends.

When asked, how it is being a woman in business she answered: “There are times when being a woman is positive and there are times when it is not. Sometimes I go to meetings and I can tell they have an attitude and there are times when people are more like ‘Great there is a woman in this industry’.

“There are moments when it is great and when it isn’t. I started the business when I was 23 so I was quite young and I felt being a female was an issue for some of my clients. I was not yet able to show my experience and my credibility. “

In the workshop, Miller also gave tips on personal branding, 60-second elevator pitch and how to make the best impression when communication over the phone.

She also expressed the importance of great networking and set some practical examples for the students on how to approach people for networking.

Bianca Miller also shared some odd moments off-camera in her time on the Apprentice, like planning to wake up once to try and get ready before everyone else, but ending up staying awake at 3 am on her day off for nothing.

She added: “You also weren’t allowed to go to the toilet on your own. If you were out on the task you had to ask the runner to go with you to the toilet. And you had no phone. They really do give you only 20 minutes to get ready and with four women sharing one bathroom was a bit of a challenge.”