Since taking up this column for the Herald it has been a pleasure to see so many ladies running their own business with a very firm grasp on their destiny.

Much as tradition may dictate a slightly different format, it is one tradition that I for one am glad to see the back of as more and more women venture into a world that for so many years was male dominated.

Not so long ago on the 4th May 1979, Margaret Thatcher became Britain’s first female prime minister taking over from a man who had, at that point in time, been the subject of a vote of no confidence by his peers.

Whatever you thought of her politics, she undoubtedly paved the way for many more women to join the ranks and now the sound of several female names being announced in a cabinet re-shuffle doesn’t even raise an eyebrow and why should it?

A real-life scenario so regularly played out around the UK during normal non-Covid times will see a man of a certain age walk into a business to voice a complaint and when he asks to speak to the owner and the lady he is addressing replies, ‘you are’ his demeanour will instantly change. Why?

Realistically the chances are that some men are pre-conditioned to think a certain way due to the fact that for their parents and generations before them that was the way it was.

It was part of the culture of that era however, the rich tapestry of life changes and sometimes we need to change with it or be outwitted by the future.

Many years ago, a wife would often start a business funded by a successful husband, who would then take a certain pride in making the more important decisions and step in just to massage his own ego and bask in the warm glow of watching his wife progress, safe in the knowledge that it was all his decisions that had contributed to her success.

For some time now the independent business lady has taken a firm grasp on the reigns of her destiny and is making her mark as more and more embark upon business ventures of their own, where they make all the decisions, sign on the dotted line, crack the proverbial whip and get to be called Guvnor!