A mother aims to fulfil her ambition by entering her nail and beauty business in The Mall Norwich's Retail Factor competition.

Sarah Douglass runs her Twinkle Toe's and Finger's business part-time from home, but hopes the competition will help her find a permanent place on the high street.

The 41-year-old, of Haverscroft Close, Thorpe Marriott, said: 'I have always wanted to do this, but when the kids were young I never had the opportunity to do it, so now I am taking the plunge. I believe its something really nice to attract people into the Mall, and I have never seen anything like my business in any of the other stores.'

The fully qualified nail technician offers a range of different styles from manicures, to acrylic overlays, glitter gels and colour tips.

And she is also planning to sell a host of beauty products including nail polish and remover, files and buffers and a selection of hand-made jewellery.

Mrs Douglass said: 'People tend to come to me on special occasions so I can match their nails to their outfits. I believe I offer something different because I have such a vivid range of colours for nails that my clients are able to choose from.'

The Mall Norwich, in partnership with the Evening News, launched The Retail Factor to give start-up businesses the chance to win two months' free trading at The Mall.

The competition is worth more than �10,000, with each business chosen by the judges receiving a stall in a prime position on the shopping floor.

All entries will be judged by a local panel which includes Alan Day, general manager for The Mall Norwich, and Elaine Maslin, the acting business editor for the EDP and Norwich Evening News.

The Retail Factor was launched on January 17 and will run for five weeks until the closing date for applications on Sunday, February 20.

If you want to enter the competition, you can collect an application form from The Mall Norwich Ask Me point on level two of the shopping centre, or you can download a form online from www.themall. co.uk/my-mall/norwich/default.aspx

Have you won a major competition? Contact Evening News reporter Ben Woods on 01603 772439 or email ben.woods@archant.co.uk.