A Sidmouth business owner has reached the final of a Devon-wide competition.

Julie Trickey, of Overly Gorgeous, will find out today if she has won the Venus Devon Business Mother of the Year.

The 44-year-old said: “I didn’t realise I was so competitive. I feel extremely excited and nervous, but it is lovely to be in this position.”

Julie, who is mother of four to Christine, 26, Jessica, 23, Stephen, 20, and Joseph, seven, hopes that reaching the final stages in the awards will be beneficial to her business as she has been networking as part of the competition.

“This is a big jump for me and my business. It is another step up and people will see that we are here and notice what we do.” she said.

The business owner has always had a love of sewing, but decided to start her own business after finding a gap in the market for products aimed at the larger lady.

After returning to education and getting a business degree, Julie started Overly Gorgeous by working from home. Now she has two premises from which she sells her designs.

She said: “I absolutely love what I do. I have a great passion offering my ladies wonderful, stylish, flattering clothes. I feel it is very important just because we are larger we can and look and feel lovely.”

Voting closed on Wednesday for the competition. She will attend an afternoon tea at the Deer Park Hotel in Honiton later today before a larger event is held on Friday, November 21, for all the winners.