T-Shirts and Suits Creative Enterprise Network
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Jo Chaffer
- Female
- Kendal
- United Kingdom
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Jo Chaffer's Page
Profile Information
- Creative Speciality (eg Designer, Photographer)
- development trainer / creative writer
- Briefly describe your creative business - or your interest in creative businesses
- help creative businesses develop and grow
- Tell us more about your creative business...
- Currently working overseas but have good knowledge and networks in NW England including grant schemes. Was a board member of the Cumbria Network (supporting visual artists) and assisted various cultural organisations.
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Thanks very much for your email. For some reason I haven't been able to access the site to read this message, hence the delayed reply.
My idea stems from when I worked for a year in India- and saw all the fantastic hand made fabrics on sale there and had a great time choosing fabrics to make up with a tailor. Basically, I want to work from the most beautiful of what developing countries have to offer- rather than the cheapest - ideally to produce my own collection, combining traditional ethnic techniques with my own ideas (possibly a mix of interiors and fashion, to be researched). I am currently researching organisations/ companies that I could link in with. I have always wanted to work with fair trade products and to produce my own range, but I still have a lot to figure out with regards to market and selling so don't yet have a fixed idea. In terms of product- my aim is to develop a lively range, using beautiful traditional techniques used in countries such as India, Turkey, South America…creating a gorgeous colour/pattern range to create products that people will love (hopefully!)!
Back to the 'suits' side- the marketing/ sales! I am currently living and working as a designer near Milan. One idea that I have is to open a shop here to sell directly to the customer. I am sure that in London/ New York/ Milan they have something along the lines of what I am looking to do, this is something I will look at. If possible in terms of market and pricing, I don't want to make products for the elite, but for a larger, educated, but not necessarily rich, market. This probably sounds very vague- this is the part I am struggling with- identifying the market. I have considered selling through distributors, for example approaching organic shops that may also be interested in stocking my products, however I think that this could limit the market...Anyway just to give you a picture of where I am at with my idea, like I say this part is rather hazy right now. Obviously I need to consider finance- however haven’t done much research into this yet as my business idea is very much at the development stage so once I have a clearer idea of what will work I will start researching funding.
Just to add- I am 27 years old. As mentioned above I have gained experience as a textile designer- for a year in India, and over 2 years in Europe. I am also considering doing some sort of business course to hone my understanding of marketing, sales, management etc., as I do not currently have a time plan for my business. It could be that right now is not a good time for me due to economics/experience etc., even if I would like it to be! How have the under/post-graduates that you have advised found going into business? Did they have previous experience/training?
Any comments greatly appreciated!
Regards
Helen
I am a textile designer looking to set up a business developing fair trade products for the European market. I have a lot of ambition and determination, but not so much knowledge about how to get started. So my first step is to try and research as much as I can and figure out what exactly I want to achieve and get in touch with people and organisations who may be relevant to this goal. So... I would be very grateful if you could tell me more about if you have experience with starting up creative companies, or if not do you know of someone who may?
Many thanks
Best regards
Helen