A woman from Rothbury has seen her choice to swap a corporate job for her welding passion pay off with an upcoming TV appearance.
Diane Mennim made the bold decision to leave behind her medical sales job to take up the craft, and is now starring in the BBC show Make It at Market.
The 54-year-old is a single mum of two, and also left her medical sales role in 2023 because she wants to spend more time with her girls. After learning to weld around the same time, Diane took a leap of faith, buying a welder and deciding to give herself a year to see if she can make this idea for a business work.
In order to motivate herself, Diane secured a pitch at the Newcastle Quayside Sunday market, and also began selling on Etsy, with the positive reception that her pieces have received proving to be quite overwhelming. It was then, after seeing previous episodes of Make It at Market, Diane decided to take another big step forward and apply for the show’s third series.
She said: “When I applied for the show, I didn’t really think I had a chance of being selected, but the story of me swapping a business suit for a welding jacket must have appealed to them. I had a few calls with a producer who was really helpful and good at keeping me calm, and when I found out I had been chosen I was very emotional.
(Image: Diane Mennim)
“We filmed in July, and I was joined by my mentor Ian Gill, who is an incredible metal sculptor and he was so supportive throughout the experience. We then had eight weeks to go away and sell as much as we could, with a big reveal celebration in September to see how well everyone had done.
“I was at the Quayside, Alnwick market, the Northumberland County Show, all over the North East, and it was the most wonderful experience. I am now working on creating my website ahead of the show going out on March 3, and I really feel that this could help to give the business a big boost.”
Now, through her business, DMetalbyDiane, the Northumberland welder is looking to prove that working with metal, and welding in particular, is not just for men, to her daughters and any other young girls who take an interest in what she does.
She added: “I really want to keep going with the business for as long as I can, and it’s nice to prove to people that a girl can do something like welding, because it is quite a male-dominated thing. This is certainly a bit different to what I used to do, but it has been a great journey so far, and everyone I have met along the way has been amazing, so I hope it continues.”
The third series of Make It at Market, hosted by the Repair Shop’s Dom Chinea, begins in March on BBC One, with Diane’s episode airing at 3.45pm on Wednesday March 5.
To find out more about what Diane does, and to browse her products, visit her website here, and visit her business Instagram page at the link here.
View news Source: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/northumberland-woman-stars-bbcs-make-31041869
