New beginnings

Reflecting on the past year and thinking about how brave it is to start something new, we thought we would write about how we actually launched our bespoke product and furniture business with a website last October.

Although this didn’t take place at the beginning of the year, this may still provide some honest advice to anyone wanting to start a new business or project in 2021.

So, here we go.

Investing in others is investing in you

Last summer Andy finalised the designs on our bespoke furniture and homeware range and we decided that we needed to launch with a website and ecommerce store, and we knew that we couldn’t do it alone. We decided that we needed expert knowledge. Although Andy is a brilliant designer, research fanatic, and a very quick learner, sometimes you do have to reach out to other professionals who are experts in that particular field. I didn’t mention myself above, honestly we would be old and grey by the time I had learnt how and what to do. Sometimes in order to invest in yourself you do need to invest in other people and services they provide to push you forward toward your goal.

A friend of ours was involved in a start-up called Lvl-7, and we decided to have an initial meeting with them to discuss what we needed and to ensure we could work well together.

Know your unique selling point

In the beginning we discussed SEO, accessibility, imagery, copy writing and meta data. We definitely recommend getting help from experts in all of these fields. These are also elements that need constant checking and updating. Something we need to revisit shortly! One of the most important parts of the website is the About Us page. Putting the website content together made us drill into what our core values are, and what we want to be recognised for as designers and makers. If someone stopped and asked you in the street, you need to be able to say with complete confidence what your company is about and what makes you special.

Do not beat yourself up

We spent most evenings working on the website and when our son Artie napped during the day. Pretty much working every second of the day, or at least thinking about it.

Think carefully about how you weave your new goal or project into your day. We set ourselves ambitious targets. Ultimately we love designing and making things but at the end of the day we are human and have a very small human to care for. Do not beat yourself up, if you go from feeling really excited and driven one day to despondent and muddled the next. Calmly move on to a new day.

Surround yourself with like-minded people

We also started surrounding ourselves with likeminded people, trying to get involved where we could ‘virtually’ because other peoples energy will fuel your own. We discovered Holly Tucker and her amazing community of small businesses and even virtual festivals like The Good Business Festival which we found really inspiring. Go check it out if you haven’t already.

We hope the above helps in some small way. This year we are going to keep taking baby steps forward, learning lots, trying not to miss an opportunity and above all having fun and being creative.

Follow us @circamakes and see what new ventures we take in 2021!

H&A