When she was 26, Angie Parmenter opened a delicatessen on the High in Oxford, which became famous for its home-made cakes and sandwiches. After selling that to Harveys in the mid-1990s, she then helped Martin Agius set up Fishers restaurant on St Clements, before becoming a part-owner and director of Fishers in Bristol.

Eighteen months ago, aged 48, she changed direction completely and is now to be found in Summertown, Oxford, the proud owner of Joy, a lingerie boutique.

The shop on South Parade is an oasis of calm with a funky vibe, courtesy of the gold platform shoes on a high shelf. Pretty underwear is hung on some walls, while swimwear adorns others.

There are a few racks of night attire and beachwear, with tables that display underwear, shoes and Trinny and Susannah's magic' knickers.

The overall impression is that there is ample in the boutique to grab your interest, but enough space between the products to show them to their best advantage.

It is all part of Ms Parmenter's strategy to provide understated glamour.

When first entering the shop, I was intrigued by a telephone conversation. Ms Parmenter was discussing a client, talking about her shape, what she was looking for and what suited her best.

It was clear she was committed to taking the time and care to ensure the absent person obtained the best possible service.

"When a person comes into my shop, I devote my time to that person and sometimes it can take an hour and a half, because I want them to feel wonderful about what they have bought," she explained.

"A huge percentage of women are wearing the wrong size bra and it really makes a difference to your body shape and so, when you do get someone the right-fitting bra, they feel immediately fantastic.

"I've had women throwing away their old bra in the boutique and literally jumping for joy."

Ms Parmenter decided to leave catering after 30 years in the industry.

"I was chefing a lot towards the end of my career and we used to cook for 120 people a night," she said.

"Running a section, or being a head chef is so stressful. My hands and body were suffering and I wanted to have a better quality of life."

The idea for owning another shop came from her good friend, Renate Beaumont, who owns the fashion boutique Vanilla. She was about to sell her adjoining shoe shop and Ms Parmenter asked to buy it.

At the time she had no idea what to stock it with, but over the course of a week, came up with the idea of lingerie. With Vanilla next door it made sense and she had a good example to follow.

"My mother, Eira Spinetti started Saratoga, the very first lingerie shop in Oxford," she explained.

Six months later, she was up and running. She called the shop Joy because she loves the word so much.

"It's kind of a family thing. We say: Oh what a joy' or: It's in the cupboard of joy', if we're looking for something. It is also a word that makes people smile and feel happy."

Her biggest seller is the Elle Macpherson Intimates range, which retails from £27 for a bra. She also stocks a wide range of European labels, mid-range and luxury, including Manuel Canova, Pain de Sucre, Lejaby and Huit (French), Valery and Cosa Bella (Italian), Marlies Dekkers (Dutch) and Day (Danish).

She added: "I do silks from Silk Cocoon, an Oxford-based company run by Ying and Richard Groves," she said.

"We always try and get together over dinner at the lingerie fairs as I'm a buyer and they're a seller." Eighteen months on, Ms Parmenter has doubled her space by taking over the adjoining shop and is building up a loyal clientele through word-of-mouth recommendation and direct marketing.

Her strategy for success is to keep the overheads down and not spend too much on stock.

"It was slow to start, but I'm now becoming a viable business with the potential to expand. It's a hungry mouth to feed, so I know I've got to always be aware of market trends," she said.

The longer she is open, the more her customers are helping to define what she sells, although she will not stock something if she does not like it.

Although selling lingerie would seem very different from food, she says there are similarities, particularly in the fact that she is dealing with people.

Now she is enjoying life, particularly as she is not constantly travelling between Bristol and Oxford.

"I'm having sleep, I'm taking care of myself more and I've got more time to stay with my beautiful family and my gorgeous friends."

Sounds like a good recipe for life.