Beating odds to set up business

From left, Alisdair Lindley and business partner Anthony Critchley have set up a new company, Breeze, based at Allied House, Standishgate

Anthony Critchley, originally of Winstanley, will celebrate Breeze digital marketing becoming a limited company next week.

The 41-year-old previously worked at a drama school having learnt his trade as a web developer at Winstanley College, but was forced to leave in January. He became ill following a breakdown, and needed an immediate cash supply in order to raise his children Maiya, nine, and Jacob, five.

He decided to work full time on a sole trader business he set up the year before, AntzWeb, and never looked back.

Mr Critchley said: “It was rewarding, even though it was one of the most stressful things in my life. The success of AntzWeb was that it got two clients who saw the potential in me and in my vision.”

Those two clients – Alisdair Lindley of Allied Insurance and Mark Berry of Willow Starcom – decided to invest in the digital marketing firm and create Breeze.

Mr Critchley’s business success was made sweeter by his girlfriend Louise Cardwell overcoming a medical trauma after months of worry.

He believes the new firm has “massive potential”, and he hopes his story can inspire others who want to launch their own company.

He said: “You have just got to believe what you are doing is right and keep going.

“Life’s short – if you have an idea, you don’t want to waste it.

“Believe in yourself, trust your journey.”