Gift Focus inc Attire Accessories - January / February 2021

134 When did you start up and why? Hill & Ellis started in 2013 as I was hunting high and low for a bike pannier that I could commute to work with but that I wasn’t embarrassed to carry with me. After fruitlessly searching I decided to start designing. I got some samples professionally made and, after getting stopped at traffic lights by other cyclists asking me where the bags were from, I knew I was onto something. What challenges have you overcome since the company’s launch? Finding a great manufacturer takes time and lots of searching but hunting out a great manufacturer that will work with you to get the best from your product is priceless. As a bootstrapped start-up that remains small, marketing is a constant challenge as we just don’t have the budget that other companies have to spread the word about the product, so we have to think outside the box. Tell us about your product offering. We offer a range of cycle bags designed to work perfectly on the bike, but also designed to look great on your arm and work for your lifestyle. The majority of our bags work as pannier bags and attach to the bike, with pannier hooks. We have a partnership with the best pannier hook manufacturer (German designed) to use on our products so our hooks are extremely secure and adaptable. We also make bags that are designed for the ever-popular Brompton bicycle, as well as personalised bicycle baskets, and cute little saddle bags. All our leather bags come with waterproof covers and hidden reflective detailing, and our canvas bags are silicon coated for water- repellence. We chose this coating after speaking to Greenpeace about the best water-repellent coating that doesn’t harm the environment. All our bags are small batch produced to ensure quality and sustainability is at the centre of what we produce. So, we are removing plastic from our packaging, use materials sourced close to production, make the majority of our bags in the UK, plant a tree for every bag sold, and have a climate positive workforce. What are your most popular products? Our British-made panniers still continue to be our most popular products, but our latest canvas cycle tote bags are very popular, especially at the moment in the run up to Christmas. Have any styles taken you by surprise with their popularity? Six years ago, we launched our British Made range of bags, and I decided to combine bright yellow and grey. A combination that’s popular now but wasn’t a combination seen at all then. It felt quite risky at the time, but I knew the combination worked. We launched it as a limited edition