What motivated you to go into business for yourself?

My sister and I run www.scampbabygifts.co.uk – a business hand making unusual gifts & personalised keepsakes for children.

Motivation to work for myself stemmed from my increasing frustration in my once enjoyable full time then post maternity leave 3 days/week not nearly as satisfying role at the BBC.  Most of my salary was spent on childcare which can somehow be justified as ‘payment’ for keeping hold of a job but if you have stopped enjoying what you are doing that is not easy to reconcile.  So, early in 2010 I decided to give doing something for myself a fair shot.  With one child in full time school and the other in reasonably priced day care the timing felt right.

With four young children between us my sister and I saw a gap in the market for a range of lovely, distinct and affordable items for children’s rooms having struggled to easily find what we wanted for our own kids.  My sisters and I have always been interested in making things since childhood and combining the idea of handmade children’s products with my experience in a marketing & creative field seemed to make for good business sense. 

Tell us a bit about what business does

The Scamp studios are abuzz with the sound of sewing machines (well, mine and my sisters!) hand making an array of room accessories from personalised appliquéd pictures to baby blankets and other little gifts for kids – perfect for new babies, christenings and birthdays.  When the stitching stops the designing and hand making of cards and gift tags begins so that you needn’t leave Scamp’s website when you buy a gift.  It’s all there!

How did you get started?

Literally starting as a kitchen table business, with my sister making a few personalised appliquéd pictures for friends during her second maternity leave, getting good feedback, and deciding to approach a couple of local shops in Leeds to see if they might be interested in stocking them.  They were, we got a sale on the first day they appeared in the shop and things developed from there with me joining in the business later on that year.

How did you get first customers?

Our very first customers were friends leading to them recommending us to their friends and word of mouth orders and then sales once the first iteration of www.scampbabygifts.co.uk went live (very handily designed by my brother in law can design websites and knows all about SEO!)

What have been the highlights so far?

Our first website order from a complete stranger was very exciting and being approached by www.notonthehigstreet.com to sell on their website (they are pretty discerning in their choice of partners) was really good for us to see that people not connected to us like what we do as well as just friends and family!

Any low points?

Delay in launching our new website (for various reasons) meaning we weren’t able to capitalise as much as we’d hoped on the Christmas 2010 market – but we’re all set for 2011 though!

What’s been the best business decision you’ve made?

To leave my job at the BBC and give Scamp my undivided attention.  Me having more time to concentrate on business strategy, marketing and finance (to name but a few of my roles!) has definitely helped take the business up to another level.

Hindsight?

Trusting gut instinct more is a lesson learned so not ending up being ‘seduced’ into doing something you really don’t think is quite right however tempting the offer seems at the time.

Where are you ‘at’ with the business now?

An exciting point in the business with the launch of our new website in November containing a more varied product range, a PR campaign started at the end of 2010 is starting to reap rewards and lots of ideas for new products and ranges to complement our existing ones are in development.

What do you think are the secrets of your success?

Hand making things is very personal so being open to suggestions from others and adapting ideas and being willing to make changes to products you may think are good based on others feedback has helped a lot plus plenty of enthusiasm and genuine enjoyment of what I am doing. 

What are your plans for the future?

To keep creating new products that align with our ideal of ‘ensuring style is not forgotten when it comes to the littlest members of the household’ and keep finding new people who want to buy into that.

What do you enjoy most about doing what you are do?

Seeing what my sister and I are doing directly benefiting our company gives way more job satisfaction than I ever got in my previous jobs.

How do you juggle work and family?

My working hours tend to be straight after school/nursery drop off until 2 minutes before I need to dash out the door to pick them up again.  I try to only work four days per week so I still have a day on my own with my youngest.  This often means some evening working which isn’t ideal but I have a very tolerant husband who is now used to me padding off to the studio after dinner to make or work on the computer.  I don’t tend to work over a weekend unless I am having a stall at a fair in which case the whole family are roped in to help build stands and move boxes of products around the city!  Having my Iphone is also a big help in the juggle as I can quickly check emails as I wait for my kids at a ballet class or gymnastics so no kid free seconds are wasted!

What do your children think of you being in business?

My oldest child, Ava, is 5 and is now very into fabrics  also loves ‘making things’ which I’m sure is a result of seeing me doing all of that for my business!  She also likes ‘helping’ at some of the fairs I have attended (usually putting a few items in bags for customers and then getting a bit bored!). Jonah is nearly 3 and is often more of a hindrance than a help with all the small bits and pieces that float around my studio but has been a very willing model for the various photo shoots that we have done.  They are both a bit young to really understand what I’m doing but always seem enthusiastic and supportive when they see mummy working at any event that they come along to.

• five words to describe you - optimistic creative loving, giving, happy
• things that make you happy - fresh air and family, dancing with my kids, new experiences, foreign lands, friends
• vices - becoming ever so slightly addicted to my IPhone, maybe using CBeebies too much like a babysitting service when I'm busy(!)
• virtues - honesty and loyalty
• your motto in life - Live life to the fullest
• your favourite book - I know this much is true - Wally Lamb
• your favourite film -  The Graduate
• your favourite music - changes a lot but folksy vocalists like Martha Wainwright or Laura Marling are being played lots in the house at the moment
• you favourite food/meal - my husband makes a mean peppered steak with fat chips
• your favourite piece of clothing/outfit - my fifties style wedding dress.  the only made to measure item of clothing I've ever owned so it fitted like a glove and made me feel amazing!
• your most treasured possession - my children

Your children

How many? - two

One boy, one girl

Ava is five and Jonah is three

What are they like? Ava has a real thirst for knowledge and loves learning anything new -  from reading to creative projects - a great example of this is her telling her brother 'Jonah, I am at school now so I know everything!' said after her first day at reception!  She is a very thoughtful and kind soul and (most of the time!) a pleasure to spend time with.  Jonah is a charming little man - mischievous, boyish, cheeky but adorable all rolled into one happy go lucky bundle.

What's your average day like?

My day starts around 7.30 when I'm woken by the sounds of playing children in their shared bedroom.  I love secretly listening in to their conversations before I walk in to get ready for the day

At lunch - I usually have forgotten to eat until about 1.30 so it's a quick run down to the kitchen and a hurried soup or salad

My office is a little room that doubles as office and studio space at the top of my house

I relax by daydreaming in a quiet space

My day ends more often than not later than in should

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