My Small Business & Me

#032 - Florist Leigh Chappell shares her small business story. Originally a graphic designer, she took up a friend's suggestion to take a floristry course and then decided to change career. She now creates wedding flower designs, runs workshops and is also co-organising the upcoming Strawberry Hill Flower Festival. 

Growing up in Wales, Leigh studied botanical illustration at Swansea Art College. She then moved to London and worked for graphic design companies. She relished working in a team and to a brief. 

A friend asked her if she'd like to do a floristry course, which happened to have a horticultural element. And she absolutely loved it. So much so that she started freelancing for an event florist. 

In 2006, the florist told Leigh that she was moving away and asked if she'd like to take over her 20 weddings. So she partnered with a friend and they did all the weddings. They then set up a website and put together leather portfolios featuring photos of all their floral designs, which they showed to prospective clients. Nowadays, Leigh works on her own and continues to create wedding flowers, but also runs group workshops and 121s. 

She shares how she now uses Instagram as her digital portfolio and her reasons for choosing a dark aesthetic for her photographs. She talks about the services she currently offers including weddings and workshops. And how important she feels that Instagram is for marketing her business. 

Leigh shares details about the upcoming Strawberry Hill Flower Festival, which she's jointly organising with Janne Ford. She describes what visitors can expect to see at the event.  Plus she shares details of an installation which she'll be co-creating at the Oriel Myrddin Gallery in Wales. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Leigh is about using flowers as a medium to create designs and how important she feels Instagram is for promoting her business. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode32

#031 - Brand designer Caz Harrison shares her career journey. Having worked initially as a graphic designer at a company in Surrey, she set up her own business, Making Waves, when she moved to Devon. She now focuses on brand identity, website design and design for print. 

After taking a foundation course in Exeter, she studied Visual Communication in Surrey. Then she started working as a graphic designer at a print company, which developed into a branding agency. 

She had always wanted to return to Devon to live by the sea. So, eight years later in 2014, she moved to Sidmouth with her husband. There, she set up her small business.  She talks about her decision process in choosing its name, Making Waves. 

As well as discussing the services which she currently offers and what a brand identity actually comprises, she also talks about her process when designing a new brand identity and the deliverables. 

Caz emphasises how important she feels it is for her to create a brand identity that works hard for her client's business and where they want to be. She also shares her 'why', where she finds inspiration for her work and her plans for the remainder of 2021. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Caz is about empowering her clients with a brand identity which takes them to the next level. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode31

#030 - Stylist and mentor Amy Louise Hatch shares her small business journey.  Originally an Office Manager and PA, she decided to set up her own styling business after having her baby boy. She now runs The Timeless Stylist and also her new brand Amy Louise Hatch. 

Amy originally worked for various companies in the creative industry in London as an Office Manager and PA. Having moved to Kent, over five years ago, Amy had a baby boy. On weighing up her options, she realised that it would be financially pretty unviable to return to her office job. So she decided to set up her own business. 

Initially, she began working as a Virtual Assistant. And then later she set up her wedding design and styling business, Vintage Amy. She came to a point where she realised that the business wasn't fulfilling her. So she did a lot of inner work, with both a business coach and a counsellor. 

She recognised how beautiful her styling could look if captured in a fine art style. And how much she loved storytelling. So she decided to rebrand as The Timeless Stylist offering design and styling for wedding couples, telling their stories. She shares her brand story and how she worked with a branding designer to create her ethereal, gentle and timeless aesthetic. 

Amy shares the impact of the pandemic on her business and the wedding industry, how she organised an free online summit to help people who work in the wedding industry, and ran an online course, The Art of Brand Aesthetics. 

She also talks about how at the end of 2020, she travelled to Zambia to style a shoot for a wedding planner. On returning to the UK, she decided to set up her new brand Amy Louise Hatch for the business-to-business side of her company. 

Now as well as offering wedding design and styling under her The Timeless Stylist brand, she also offers mentoring as Amy Louise Hatch to her commercial clients, helping them tell their brand story. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Amy is about the wedding industry, helping both her wedding clients and the companies who work within the industry. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode30

#029 - Seed merchant Grace Alexander shares her multi-hyphenated 'suit to boot' career story. Originally, a psychologist, a change at work was the trigger to her deciding to plant some flowers in her garden. Since then she's become a seed merchant, has set up a membership site and written her first book.  

Based in Somerset, Grace was working as a children protection consultant clinical psychologist when in 2013 personnel issues arose in her workplace. She started planting flowers in her garden, loving the tangibility of gardening as it balanced the intangibility of her job.  She then set up her first business and called it Corfe Fruit & Flowers. And she started creating wedding flower designs. 

Things started to improve at work and she returned full-time. But she couldn't let go of flowers. She realised that it was no longer feasible to continue to do weddings. However she absolutely loved seeds. And selling seeds gave her the opportunity to bring all her obsessions of graphic design, fonts and styling together. 

She now continues to sell seeds in specially designed packets, as well as run a membership programme called Gather. And she continues to work as a psychologist 2 days a week. 

Grace shares how her first book, 'Grow and Gather: A Gardener's Guide to a Year of Cut Flowers', has come about. An authentic take on flower growing, the book is to now to be published on September 30th.

She also discusses her monthly membership subscription, Gather. It features how-tos, what's out now, jobs to do this week, interviews, imagery and films.  Plus it includes the opportunity to buy seeds from her shop and access to a private Instagram account. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Grace is about being a flower grower, selling seeds and working with nature. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode29

#028 - Florist Joanne Truby shares her small business journey. Moving from the corporate world to study floristry, she set up her wedding and event design company in 2012. She now also runs masterclasses and taster days, teaching how to create floral designs in her natural, English country garden style. 

After her A levels, she worked in the e-commerce departments at Heals and River Island. Then whilst travelling through Central America, she decided that she wanted to do a degree in something creative. 

She signed up for Floral Design & Event Management, and fell completely head over heels in love with flowers. In 2012, once she'd finished studying, she created the wedding flowers for a friend. 

Concentrating on weddings and events, her business grew organically initially with the aid of taking part in collaborative styled photoshoots, which were featured in magazines and on blogs. And later, her business expanded from using social media including Instagram.

Joanne discusses her photography journey and having her designs being featured in a book about wedding flowers. Plus she shares the impact of the pandemic on her business, describing how she made the most of her time during lockdown. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Joanne is about teaching and the transition that her students achieve when spending time with her. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode28

#027 - Farmer Florist Rebecca Stuart from The Garden Gate Flower Company shares her small business journey. After working in various roles in a corporate environment in London and Bath, she now lives in her home county of Cornwall, growing and designing flowers for weddings. And she recently started creative art direction for product styling and prop sourcing. 

After studying at Surrey Institute of Art & Design, Rebecca moved to London and began to temp. She worked her way up from receptionist to secretary to running a team. And during this time, she learned a lot about the processes of running a business like marketing, PR and email management. 

Whilst working at Macmillan Publishers, she met her husband and decided to go back to New Zealand with him. She took two years out to travel and work in New Zealand and Australia with him. In 2001, they returned to the UK, got married and bought a house in Bath. 

During a holiday to France, they decided that they were either going to move to France or back to Cornwall. Rebecca originally thought the conversation was a bit of a 'holiday chat'. However, on their return, her husband put their house up for sale. And shortly afterward they moved to Lostwithiel. 

She decided that she wanted to run her own business and started making curtains and blinds. However, she found working on her own to be lonely. Her friend Maz had read an article about flower growing. And she suggested that Rebecca started growing flowers in her paddock. So, they did!

They had a website set up, decided to do wedding flowers and worked closely with the local wedding market. Inspiration for their seasonal designs came from Constance Spry and the Dutch Masters. 

Rebecca discusses working collaboratively with other wedding suppliers, including Louise from Taylor & Porter and Leech Pottery. Plus she talks about her passion for photography, her recent move into commercial styling and her plans for the remainder of the year. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Rebecca is about flower growing and working collaboratively with other small businesses, particularly photographers whose work matches her brand. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode27

#026 - Farmer Florist Milli Proust shares her small business journey. After studying to be an actor, then working as an archivist, a move out of London to West Sussex led to her growing flowers using sustainable practices. She now creates designs for weddings and events, plus has a nationwide bouquet delivery service. 

Inspired by her grandmother, Milli has always loved flowers. At the age of 18, she considered becoming a florist, but ending up following her other passion, which is storytelling. And she got a place at RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art ) in London and studied acting. 

Before, during and after spending time at RADA she worked in an archive, which was predominantly a photographic archive. Then she was headhunted and went to Battersea Power Station to be their archivist. In her free time, she did flowers as a hobby. 

About 5 years ago, she moved to West Sussex, where she's currently based. And she realised that she could grow her own flowers. By the end of her first year in business, she had created wedding flowers for a friend. 

Over a period of 2 years, she slowly reduced her office work and increased her time growing flowers. Then by January 2020, she had manoeuvred to be solely focused on growing flowers and running workshops. 

When the pandemic struck, she decided to set up a nationwide bouquet delivery service, which she continues to do now, as well as create wedding flower designs. 

Milli discusses how she learned how to grow flowers, her photography journey and her photography process from taking photos on her camera to posting them on Instagram. She also shares her plans for the remainder of the year. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Milli is about capturing her floral journey through her photography and her passion for storytelling. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode26

#025 - Commercial Interiors Stylist and Writer Joanna Thornhill shares her career story. As well as her styling work, she also writes for magazines and a trend forecasting agency, creates copy and content for creative business and interior design clients. Plus she's written three books. 

After having studied fashion promotion, she began working in TV production as a runner. Then she moved into the interior styling world working as a stylist assistant for magazines, events and commercial shoots. Covering maternity leave at Women's Weekly magazine as Assistant Crafts & Home Editor was the propellor for her becoming a fully-fledged stylist and writer. 

Joanna describes the role of a stylist and talks about her recent book, 'The New Mindful Home'. She shares numerous tips on how to create a space to work in your home which will be beneficial to you, including colour advice. 

She goes on to explain the impact of the pandemic on her work and the new services she's now offering. The terms neuroaesthetics, biophilia and biomimicry are also discussed. She shares her thoughts on the current lifestyle shift to thinking more mindfully and sustainability about our homes. Plus, she talks about the interior trends which are popular at the moment. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Joanna is about interior styling and how choices we make about how we decorate our homes can impact our well-being. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode25

#024 - Florist Melissa Richardson shares her small business journey. After running a model agency for many years, in her mid-fifties she set up JamJar Flowers in London. Now with a team of three permanent staff, she designs floral concepts, installations and art pieces for bespoke events and private clients.

On leaving school, she went to drama school. After having worked as a photographer's agent, then freelancing in styling and casting, she became a model agent. When the model agency she worked for went bust, her dad suggested that she set up a model agency.  

Aged 55, after having run the agency for 27 years, she decided to close it. She'd always had a great love of flowers, so she started a floristry business from her kitchen table. Melissa shares the reactions from her friends and family about her career change. 

She then talks about the transferable skills that she'd used in her model agency and then in her floristry business. She also discusses the benefits of working with people younger than herself, including Amy , Talena and India. Melissa explains what JamJar Edit is and how it came about.  Plus she discusses the impact of the pandemic on the business. 

The Nature of Thyme, a pressed botanicals exhibition, which they created pressed flower designs for, and their installation for this year's RHS Chelsea Flower Show are also discussed in detail. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Melissa is about changing career mid-life and working with a team of younger people. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover her practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode24

#023 - Husband and wife team Brett and Caroline run botanical design brand, Stengun Drawings, offering a collection of contemporary greeting cards, postcards and Giclee prints featuring flowers and plants. 

After having studied Fine Art at university, Caroline started working in the fashion world. And when her full-time job went down to four days a week, she decided that she wanted a hobby. So she started painting again.

Originally her paintings featured birds. She set up and Instagram account to share her work and started to get positive feedback and commissions, which boosted her confidence. Then she was commissioned to paint a plant and hasn't looked back. 

Caroline made her paintings into greeting cards and sold them in local markets in East London. And Brett helped her out, coming on board full-time a few years later after having working in fashion in PR.

You'll hear about the process of creating their designs, from the initial photograph taken on a field trip to painting and editing. They also share how they've started taking their finished cards and prints back to the place the flowers and plants were initially photographed and have taken photos of them in situ. 

Commissions from Selfridges for their website and collaborations with The RHS have also come about in recent years. And their greeting cards, postcards and prints now have an international reach, with distributors all around the globe. 

Listening to this episode, you'll hear how passionate Caroline and Brett are about staying true to your aesthetic, finding your niche and growing a small business organically. At the end of the podcast, you'll discover their numerous practical tips, which I'm sure you'll find very inspiring. 

Show notes are available on the My Small Business & Me website: https://mysmallbusinessandme.com/episode23