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By Little Mummy, July 19, 2009 12:18 am

Q1. Give a brief description of your business.

We run an organic cotton clothing company with ranges for babies, children and breastfeeding mums.

Q2. You used to be known as ‘cut4cloth’, why did you change the name?

Cut4Cloth was started originally because I couldn’t find any clothing anywhere on the market that would fit comfortably over a cloth nappy. It made sense that our clothing followed the ethical considerations that drew us to cloth nappies in the first place so we made it organic and fair trade. As my son grew out of nappies I realized that there was a market for older children’s clothes that were also organic and fair trade and when I breastfed my second some (now nearly 3yrs) I realized that there was a lack of stylish and discreet breastfeeding wear available too. This led to me wanting to expand the range of products outside just the cloth nappy arena and the name Cut4Cloth was a bit too specific to allow that – so we changed the name to Frugi – Latin for “Fruits of the Earth”.

Q3. In the early days how did you manage childcare?

Kurt (my husband) and I both gave up our jobs, remortgaged the house and put everything we owned on the line to start this business. We knew if we were going to build a really good brand it needed a 100% commitment and so of course did Tom our little baby. So in the beginning we ran the business from home and juggled him between us – we only had one computer, so the other one had Tom. Of course running a business from home also means you do quite a lot of work in the evening when the baby is soundly sleeping!

Q3. What have been your most successful marketing strategies?

We decided a long time ago that we would rather use a big advertising budget for something worthwhile than for a paid space in a magazine so we joined 1% for the Planet – which means we give 1% of our turnover (whether or not we make a profit or a loss) to two environmental charities. We get a lot of positive PR about this and all our other ethical works and so generate a lot of magazine/newspaper inches – which tend to be more effective than advertising anyway, proving that being green can actually be a really good business strategy too!

Partnering with other companies and doing joint offers to each other’s databases in your newsletters etc. is currently working a treat as many similar ethos companies have customers that would be interested in our products.

Q4. How are you utilising social media to market your business?

We have a Frugi Fanpage on Facebook and now have over 1200 Frugi Fans – they talk to each other and to us directly and it is a great communication tool to spread all the latest news on Planet Frugi around!

We also Twitter and have a Frugi Blog – we give our Frugi Crusaders our outfits to review and put “no holes barred” comments about them on all these media. It all increases trust and a feeling of belonging to the brand.

Q5. How are you as a smaller business fighting back against the economic downturn?

We are currently seeing the majority of our growth coming from overseas – the weak state of the pound has seen our export business rocket and we essentially doubled our turnover over the last 12 months.

Q6. For mums that may be considering starting a business, would you advise them to hold off until the waters are warmer, or should they just go for it?

I think it depends what the business is in? If it is property development etc – I’d probably say it’s not the best time to start, but if you have a business that is going to fill a niche and a currently unmet demand, then now is as good a time as any I think. Banks are a lot more wary though so don’t expect too much help from them. A smaller business has a great advantage over bigger businesses though – they can respond to change much much quicker – you see an opportunity – go for it!

Visit Frugi

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By Little Mummy, June 21, 2009 2:37 am

Aruna is an ex-barrister who now makes an income producing books with BlurbNation. Read on to find out how she does it.

First, a quick introduction to BlurbNation;

BlurbNation is a community of editors, writers, designers, artists, and photographers. Blurb provides everything you need to make books for your clients, including free bookmaking software, your own online bookstore, and a print-on-demand back-end that enables you to print professional-quality books in any quantity. Anyone can become a member of BlurbNation, it’s as simple as signing up and making yourself available to make books

Q1. Can you briefly describe BlurbNation and how it works?

Whilst using the BookSmart software is very easy, there are people who can’t or don’t want to make their own books. Blurb has set up a directory of book makers called BlurbNation to cater to people who want books made but don’t have the time or technical know how to do it.

Book makers who have met certain criteria can apply to Blurb to be included in the directory. The directory is available to the public who can go through it and from details provided choose the right book maker for the job at hand. All dealings between the client and book maker are independent of Blurb who have no contractual relationship with either party.

For book makers themselves BlurbNation is a fantastic means of communicating with each other, sharing ideas and problem solving. In addition to this BlurbNation provides its members with tips on design and marketing too. It can be a lonely job sitting in front of your computer, putting a book together and the support you can gain from other BlurbNation members is immeasurable.

Q2. How did you find out about and become a member of BlurbNation?

I found Blurb very early on and was addicted, making books for anyone and everyone who mentioned an idea, whether it was a party, a business or a passion! As a result of that I was lucky enough to be asked to be the first BlurbNation member in the UK. For some time I didn’t really understand what it was all about. As the months went by and Blurb got more and more exposure here in the UK, I started getting email enquiries and then actually started getting work through it. I didn’t realise how useful it would be then but I am very grateful for the opportunities that have come my way through BlurbNation.

Q3. Did you have any previous photography or publishing experience?

No, I had no previous experience in either field! I qualified as a barrister and had a criminal and family law practice for 12 years but stopped to bring up my son and daughter (now aged 12 and 8). When my daughter was 5 and at school full time, I found a new lease of life and having received a Canon digital SLR and a Mac Book Pro lap top as Mother’s Day and birthday presents three years ago, there was no stopping me!

I had always been interested in photography but it was an expensive hobby as developing and printing film was a costly exercise, largely because you didn’t really know what you had till the film was exposed. Now you know within seconds of taking a photograph so there is no waste of time or money! I hadn’t had my own income since having my children and I became keenly aware of the fact that everything cost money! Here for the first time, I could experiment with my photography and editing without feeling guilty about mounting costs because if I didn’t like what I did I could simply erase it!

Q4. Do you think it’s possible to make a full or part time wage from book making with Blurb Nation?

In this day and age there is so much competition in every field. Blurb has created such a unique platform where your only outlay is your time and the cost of printing a book so really, there is no risk of losing capital. Realistically, when starting out, Blurb Nation can certainly provide you with pocket money. It will take your own initiative to turn it into a full income sustaining project. If like me you have chosen (and are lucky enough to afford) to stay at home and look after your children, then joining Blurb Nation and making a go of creating full time income from it is not risky. I don’t want to jump the gun and say that I am making a living from it but I can say that I am not far off from being able to!

Q5. Are there any particular skills you think are necessary or helpful to be successful with BlurbNation?

I had no qualifications in the fields of photography and design but I think I had a natural flair for it. The one thing I have gained from BlurbNation and the team who run it is confidence. That confidence, a good eye for design, creativity, and huge amounts of enthusiasm has been my secrets to success.

Q6. How could someone interested in following in your footsteps get started?

To put it very simply, download the software if you haven’t already, get creating and if you have the ability, perseverance and enthusiasm, you will be on your way over those stepping stones to success. You have nothing to lose by trying. In the world we live in it is not every day you get the chance to try something for nothing. BlurbNation is effectively one such chance!

Read more mumpreneur case studies..

Comments (3)

By Little Mummy, February 3, 2009 9:12 am

Okay, ‘attack’ might be a little strong, ‘approach’ might be better. I’m surprised everyday by the lack of take up of social media amongst small businesses, especially in the UK. The blog & email newsletter is a popular combination in the blogosphere, yet many small businesses are missing (or ignoring) the benefits.

Blogging is cheap and if done correctly can create a community that laps up your information and your products. It’s practically free to blog, a couple pounds for hosting and a few good articles and you’re on your way.

An email newsletter can be a way of connecting with your customers, building community and giving something back (ie Value) to the people who keep your business alive. Or it can be just another sales pitch. It all depends on the format, include articles, competitions, and valuable information and you have a valuable newsletter. A list of products with links to buy, well that’s just a blatant sales pitch, and very easy to unsubscribe from (especially in this economy).

I’ve checked out a cross-section of businesses owned by parents to see how they are connecting with their customers. These were completely random choices from the mum and working website. Just for fun I’ve rated them with a star system. 1* = Blog/Newsletter non-existant. 5* = Social Media Superstar

Everyday Maternity – No blog here, but they have a registration form which has a tick box for a newsletter, I suspect this newsletter would be merely a sales pitch (I might be wrong?), no incentive for joining either.

2**

Green Mums – They have an articles section, but not really a blog. No sign of a newsletter, there may be something when you sign up, but nothing promoted on the front page.

2**

Scribble Bug – No blog or newsletter sign-up form on the front page

1*

Hippychick – No blog or newsletter, but a big button to connect on facebook!

2**

Hippins

No blog or newsletter, but they have managed an adsense ad, interesting

1*

So there it is, none of the businesses I looked at were really promoting a blog or an email newsletter that offered any incentive. Maybe I’m wrong and it’s not profitable for small businesses to do this, but as a potential buyer I’d like to hear the stories behind the business owners and really connect with the companies. Loyalty and trust are key in an economy where I for one am reluctant to open my wallet and make a purchase without a lot of consideration.

Comments (1)

By Little Mummy, July 6, 2006 11:33 am

Well folks, I’m pleased to announce to you some breaking news.

Slowly but surely consumerism is being overturned by the new wave of creativity. Hand-made beats machine-made hands down and now you can get involved too. Think about what you do best…

Here are a few ideas from get rich slowly on how to become more creative and maybe even make a little extra money on the side. Making money instead of spending money will make you happier and is more of a challenge. So give it a try.

Here are just a couple of the suggestions at Get Rich Slowly

Knitting – Knit. If you’ve been bit by the knitting bug, put that yarn habit to work. Create simple, beautiful hats and scarves. Take commissioned projects. My wife is learning to knit adorable little stuffed animals; she could sell them for $20 a pop.

Cook. Do people rave about your food? Offer to cater events. Provide food for a picnic, for a cocktail party, for a sit-down dinner. Sell cookies and cakes.

You could also;

Produce hand-made cards, soap, candles, or coasters.

Sell your old things on an auction site, and other people’s too.

Make flavoured olive oils, lemon, chilli, garlic – sell them at craft fairs.

Stop spending and start earning. Are you making money from a hobby? Let us into the secret.