Carol Hanlon
Founder / CEO, Belmont Business Enterprise Centre Inc. (BBEC | BEC Global); TCF WA Inc. (TCF Australia | TCF Global); BPW Business Incubator, Western Australia
About Me
Having over fifty-five years background in small business and global NGO community organisations, including twenty years running her own fashion design small business and thirty-two years as Founder/CEO of two NFP small business advisory centres, Carol also facilitates annual small business awards, innovation festivals and global projects for the economic empowerment of women. Carol has received local, state, national and global recognition since the 1970s, as the owner/designer for twenty years of her own fashion label in Victoria, Australia; manufacturing, wholesaling, retail and export business. In 1994, she established a not-for-profit organisation in Western Australia: Belmont BEC Inc. And in 1998, the TCFWA Inc. (TCF Australia | TCF Global). Carol’s not-for- profit NGO projects have assisted over 44,000 entrepreneurs and small businesses in Australia and globally; delivering training and mentoring to women in business across Australia and globally. She also hosts annual UN CSW NGO Forums in New York titled ‘Economic Empowerment of Women Entrepreneurs, Gender
Equality and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Carol Hanlon's Background
Carol started taking in a variety of sewing orders to earn income at thirteen, leaving school and moving out of home at fifteen. She established her own fashion design business in the early 70s, when not many women ran their own businesses. The ‘Carol Hanlon’ fashion label was stocked by many hundreds of boutiques across Australia and overseas for over twenty years.
While running her business, she somehow also managed her ex-husband’s racing stables’ business admin and looked after the stable hands and jockeys who lived with the family.
Being self-taught in all areas of business, she learnt first-hand the many barriers that women face in growing their own small businesses.
Establishing Not-for-Profit (NFP) NGOs in 1994, to assist small business has been thirty-two-year journey of passion, that keeps evolving, as she strives to support entrepreneurs who need to know there is ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ and to assist them through and over the many hurdles they encounter.
‘I do what I do to make a difference to the entrepreneur, micro and small business sector, whether that is local, state, nationally or globally.’
Her passion is supporting and empowering Women in Business, as well as fashion and creative entrepreneurs.
Current & Past Community Projects
ESTABLISHED BY CAROL, 1994 TO CURRENT
BEC Women’s Empowerment Project
providing skills development to women in WA through webinars and forums 2026-2027
BEC National EXPORT Training & Mentoring Project
developing export skills development fashion & TCF business 2022-2027
TCF Australia EXPORT Training & Mentoring Project
developing export skills development of small business 2022-2027
BEC Volunteer Empowerment Project
providing skills development to volunteers through training, forums, mentoring 2025
TCF Access Asia Project
uncover TCF export & import opportunities within Asia for WA’s TCF small businesses 2023
BPW Business Incubator ‘Women in Business’ Training & Mentoring Project
skills development for women in WA 2022-23
Current & Past Appointments, Memberships
1994 TO CURRENT
Founding Manager
Belmont Business Enterprise Centre Inc.
small business advisory support, 1994 to current
Founder/Manager
Textile Clothing Footwear Resource Centre WA Inc.
Fashion, TCF Industry support 1998 to current
National President
Australasian Institute Business & Enterprise Facilitators
2026
National Board Member
BEC Australia
national network of Business Enterprise Centres across Australia 2024 - current
G100, Australia Country Chair
Micro Small & Medium Enterprises
facilitating women & men advocating for gender equality
Past National Board Member & Past WA State President
Business & Professional Women Western Australia
2017-2019
AWARDS, RECOGNITION, PRESENTATIONS
1973 TO CURRENT (AWARDED TO CAROL & PROJECTS)
2026
- Carol presenting at ‘Women Changing the World Summit’, Paris, France
- Carol presented ‘Global Youth Forum on Gender Equality’, Japan online
- Carol hosted UN CSW70 NGO Forum, New York ‘Economic Empowerment of Women Entrepreneurs, Gender & SDGs’
- Carol presented at ‘Women Economic Forum’, Columbia University, New York
- Carol presented ‘Future of Work, Future of Justice: Women's Economic Empowerment’ Cornell University, New York
- Carol presented VIATT, Vietnam Textile Industry Forum ‘Reciprocal Tariff Policies affecting Australian Exports’
2025
- Carol presented ‘MarketFind’ Expo ‘Opportunities for Fashion & Craft Products in Australian Market’, Bali, Indonesia
- Carol awarded ‘COSBOA National Small Business Champion’ Melbourne Australia
- Carol presented BPW Asia Pacific Conference, ‘Women Connecting for Change’ “Business, Trade, Technology’, Malaysia
- Carol hosted UN CSW69 NGO Forum New York ‘Economic Empowerment of Women Entrepreneurs, Gender & SDGs’
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