“I had heard about Little Black Dress Group for some time, but it was not until I had the opportunity to speak with Janine personally after a mutual friend introduced us at a marketing event, that I realised how similar are our passions and what we are trying to achieve for women, youth and generally bringing the change to how the business is conducted in the 21st century.
I was totally taken by her intellect and her ability to verbalise the issues and instantly a connection was made. The same feeling continued once I met the LBDG members. What a high calibre of thinking, supporting and committed minds. I loved the intensity and the intimacy of sharing at dinners and I felt that I found my group of women I like to be part of.”
Renata Cooper is a visionary entrepreneur and a founder and CEO of Forming Circles Pty Ltd, a unique Australian organization that is committed to providing opportunities for Australian individuals and groups in the areas of small business, education, arts, innovation, and charitable projects.
In 2012 she also founded a Written Portraits – a writing competition for teenagers a collaborative effort with Green Olive Press. Its aim is to showcase young Australian Writing talent, and provide a creative platform for the expression of inner feelings and emotions associated with being a teenager. The philanthropic element resonates in this competition as young writers have the opportunity to raise much needed literacy funds ($5000) for their schools if they are to become a winner. ‘Written Portraits – Portraits Written in Words 2012′ book is FC’s first product supporting young talent. In 2013 FC are hoping to create an unique Angel Investment Platform governed by women that serves the community as a whole. FC’s motto is to “Inspire change the way we do business in the 21st Century”.
Renata, who is originally from Slovakia, came to Australia as a refugee at 19 years of age without any family, financial help or the ability to speak English. She believed that the way forward was to learn the language and try to educate herself. She invested most of her working life self-learning many new skills and for the last 20 years was working as a financial controller for many different start-ups and also became an accomplished artist.
The successful sale of her husband’s IT company has given her the opportunity for Forming Circles’ birth. Renata is also the mother of two young children.
Web: www.formingcircles.com.au
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/FormingCircles