47 COMPANY PROFILE HAWTHORN HANDMADE info@hawthornhandmade.co.uk www.hawthornhandmade.com step back and take note of how far we’ve come. Everything is made in the UK using high-quality materials while keeping the kits accessible. How do you balance craftsmanship and affordability? It’s something we’re constantly thinking about. The quality of the materials is incredibly important to us because it directly affects the crafting experience and the finished result. Rather than compromising on quality, we focus on being efficient in other areas, whether that’s improving production processes, buying materials responsibly or refining packaging and logistics. We want people to feel that our kits offer genuine value for money - not because they’re the cheapest option available, but because they’re thoughtfully designed and fun to make. Needle felting has seen waves of popularity over the years. How has the wider craft community changed since you first started? The biggest change has probably been how mainstream crafting has become. When I started, crafting was more often seen as quite niche, whereas now it’s widely recognised for its wellbeing benefits as well as the enjoyment of making something with your hands. Social media has also transformed the craft community. People can share their projects, learn new techniques and connect with fellow makers all over the world. That’s created a much stronger sense of community and has encouraged more people to try crafts they might never have considered before. Instagram didn’t even exist when I first started running my gallery and workshops! You often exhibit at shows overseas. How has this been for business? It’s been hugely valuable. International trade shows and the US in particular have helped us build relationships with stockists, understand different markets and gain insight into industry trends outside the UK. They’ve also given us confidence that what we’re creating resonates beyond the UK. Meeting retailers and customers face-to-face is incredibly helpful because you hear directly what excites them and what they’re looking for. Many of our most important wholesale relationships have started through conversations at trade shows. We’ve recently returned from our fifth h+h Americas in Chicago, and it was our most successful trade show ever! As both a creative founder and business owner, how do you balance artistic instinct with the commercial realities of running a growing company? It’s definitely a balancing act. My creative instincts are often what generate new ideas and keep the business moving forward, but those ideas have to work commercially too, and there are so many half-finished projects and sketches that’ll never see the light of day because they were too niche and not commercial enough! Over time I’ve learned the importance of combining intuition with data. We look carefully at customer feedback, sales performance and market trends, but I also think it’s important not to lose sight of the creative vision that makes the brand distinctive. The most successful products usually sit somewhere in the middle of those two things. Looking ahead, what excites you most about the future of Hawthorn Handmade? We’ve been through a period of shifting priorities recently, focusing far more on wholesale and our amazing smaller stockists, and I’m really excited by the opportunities for continuing to grow that vital side of the business. The craft sector continues to evolve, but I love being at a stage where both the business and I have the confidence to do our own thing, and I’m truly looking forward to seeing where that takes us. New challenges are always around the corner, and that’s what I still love most about running a small creative business after all these years.
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