A WOMAN who makes bespoke bow ties is enjoying a boost in business after Dragon's Den star Theo Paphitis picked her as his Small Business Sunday winner.

Helen Clements, of Melksham, who owns Blue Eyes Bow Ties, sent Mr Paphitis a tweet about her handmade bow ties and, much to her surprise, he retweeted it to his 500,000 followers.

Miss Clements, 36, said: “I started the company in April 2016 after my partner Alex proposed. He got me a really nice ring and I wanted to do something in return, so I made him a waistcoat then decided to make him a bow tie to go with it. He loved it and suggested I make them to sell.

"Alex told me about the Small Business Sunday competition so I tweeted Theo Paphitis and got a retweet – I was bouncing off the walls with excitement."

Since the retweet Miss Clements has received extra orders for her bow ties and now has 250 new Twitter followers.

"January and February, which I expected to be quiet, have been rather busy," she said.

On February 3, Miss Clements attended the annual Small Business Sunday event with Mr Paphitis and his fellow Dragons Deborah Meaden and entrepreneur John Mills, owner of JML.

"It was amazing, we went to Birmingham for the day and I got to shake hands with Theo," she added.

Mr Paphitis said: “We are thrilled to welcome new SBS members every week and highlight just how important it is to support our small businesses in the UK. My vision is that everyone who has ever won an SBS re-tweet from me becomes part of a friendly club; like-minded individuals who can share success and learnings. The website and Shop SBS will also give a valuable profile to the winners chosen and I wish Blue Eyes Bow Ties every success.”