Gift Focus - Nov/Dec 2018 (Issue 110)

it is now from an initial investment of £3,000 of my savings with no debt. For me, our competitions are one of the key highlights each year. It’s a real privilege and inspiration to see so much wonderful work is entered, and I love making the phone calls to the winning artists to share the good news! One of our previous winners, Laura Clamp, gained so much confidence and inspiration working with Wraptious that she has gone on to launch her own greetings card business. On the challenges front, cashflow is the one constant issue we have to contend with, making sure we don’t over-extend ourselves while being able to maintain growth. I’m very bad at saying no to things, always looking for that next opportunity or exploring a new idea. It’s a constant battle for me to decide what not to take an interest in while balancing short-term gains with long-term growth. How are you finding the current economic market in the UK? I’m getting mixed signals about the current economic market. On the one hand, we are finding business buoyant, with trade picking up for retailers through the summer months and a very bustling, upbeat Autumn Fair. On the other hand, customers are taking longer to pay, with credit control absorbing more of our time, and we are now looking into invoice financing as a way to reduce our risks and increase productivity. It is clear that many businesses have over-extended themselves, from small independents to large garden centres, not helped by the growth of e-commerce, which is a trend that we have all been aware of for years but are finally starting to see real-life ramifications of. For me, it’s important that businesses are not complacent, but continually listening and exploring and are prepared to take a risk and try something different. Those that do are reaping the rewards. Which trade shows do you attend, and how are they important for the business? This year, we have attended Spring Fair, Autumn Fair and Harrogate and are looking at the same for 2019. We wouldn’t be the business we are today without them. In 2015 and 2016, we attended six to seven shows a year. Though tiring and costly, they were paramount to getting noticed and stocked with some amazing customers. Although we now attend fewer shows, we use them as an opportunity to make a big impact, coinciding with our biannual range launches, especially from our competition winners. However, the shows – for us – have never been just about sales. All but one of our suppliers came about through meeting at a trade show. Likewise our sales agents and a whole host of other fruitful and great relationships and friendships. Stories and ideas are shared, and I always come away from each show inspired. They add value to Wraptious in so many, often unexpected, ways. How important is it for Wraptious to be active on social media? Social media is fundamental to Wraptious’ ability to engage with both our customers and the art community. To be able to have conversations, ask questions, share stories, champion artists, support our retailers, have fun and celebrate creativity together is really important for us. For example, during our last competition, our Facebook page was viewed more than 500,000 times, with users exploring the entries and hopefully discovering a new artist or maybe something that inspired them. Around 40 per cent of our website traffic is directed from social media too, and this is something we’re working on improving further with more targeted ads and analytics to better understand our customers and the journey they go on with us. We are in a very crowded marketplace and, for me, it is more important than ever to be clear about what our point of difference is, how we stand out and become memorable. Do you have any advice for new traders? Our creative industry is becoming more accessible all the time, with new markets to trade in, smaller print runs and more ways to engage with customers. It can often feel like there is too much choice at times. It’s about not being afraid to just try things and see what happens! Get your work or products out there. One can tinker forever, trying to perfect a product or proposition behind the scenes, but until you get it out there, you’ll never know whether it’s what others are looking for. The old phrase “fail fast, fail often” rings true. Attend local markets, visit shops, speak to buyers, share your creations on social media. There’s also a book called The Lean Startup by Eric Ries that I’d recommend. More so now than ever, it is important to have a clear understanding about what your point of difference is. What makes you unique? What makes you memorable? What makes your customers want to keep coming back to you and tell their friends? These qualities and values should become the foundation of your business and will help guide the journey you want to go on. What are the goals for Wraptious for the future? In brief, there are three areas we are focusing on with Wraptious over the next two years. The first is to continue to support our trade customers by expanding our offering with more products and choice, better pricing, new artists and introducing gift packaging. Our second goal is to expand our bespoke manufacturing service that we launched last year for all artists and trade customers. It’s been so well received that it’s only via word of mouth that it’s grown, and we’ve had to expand our team to support it. We offer no minimums on all products, which artists and trade love as it makes it really accessible for them to sell their own products. Finally, our other main goal is the launch of our new website in 2019. This continues our vision of supporting all artists by opening up Wraptious to anyone who wants their work shared. It’s a huge software project we’ve spent two years building and launching in parts, and I can’t wait to see what 2019 brings, opening Wraptious up to all. For further information, visit wraptious.com or call +44 (0)1614 302 310 . giftfocus 27 company profile