Today I'm chatting to Sarah Plant and Maeri Howard, who together run a yummy online fabric shop. Put the kettle on and join us for tea and a chat to find out more...
Hello! Good to see you, the kettle’s just boiled – what would you like to drink?
A nice
cup of decaf earl grey for me please and a coffee for Maeri.
So, tell
us a bit about yourselves and your business...
Make and
Do Provisions was set up in November 2012 by myself, Sarah Plant and Maeri
Howard. We mainly sell fabric sourced from America in unusual and quirky
prints. We also sell bag making supplies and ready to sew kits. We have an
online shop but we also sell through the
Make and Do studio in Warrington.
What
inspired you to start selling fabrics?
We wanted to provide
those who visit the workshops at the studio the opportunity to buy fabric and
other supplies, which then led us to selling it
online. We ultimately wanted to supply hard-to-find fabric from America to
customers in the UK.
How is
your business developing?
As it's
still in it's early stages, we are still tweaking things. We are
constantly learning and adapting our site to the needs of our
customers.
What are
the main ways you promote your business?
Mainly
though social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Pinterest seems to be a
popular way to promote as well. We do really well by word of mouth; people
coming to the workshops are tempted by all the lovely fabric we have on
display.
What’s your workspace like? And do
you have any workspace organisation tips for the rest of us?
All of
our fabric and supplies are on display in the studio. It's quite a compact
space but Maeri has done a great job of using reclaimed furniture to form
storage space and shelves.
What are
the best and worst bits of running your business?
It takes
a lot of time to keep the online store up to date as we are constantly selling
stock from the studio. However it's great to be able to offer products to those
who come to the workshops that we use and recommend. It's also quite tricky
running the business between the two of us, meaning many meet ups with coffee and
cake are needed!
What
other creative businesses do you admire?
Papercut Patterns are a great independent company that sell clothing patterns. I love how they
package the patterns, such an unusual and attractive idea to display the
patterns after use.
What tips
can you give to others who run (or hope to run) a small creative business?
First of
all, go for it! You can start out small and see how things go, gradually
building up your business with time. If you know someone with similar ideas,
approach them and see if they are interested in becoming partners. It helps to
share the load and you can bounce ideas off each other.
What are
your hopes, plans or ambitions for the future?
Ultimately
it would be great to expand our range, stocking more bag making supplies and
yummy fabric. We'd both love to branch out into having an actual store, however
that's a few years off yet!
Finally,
where are the places we can find you online if we want to partake in a little
friendly cyber stalking?
Thanks so
much for stopping by – it was so nice to be able to
take the time to chat with you!
Thanks
for having us!
If you enjoyed today's tea and a chat with Sarah and Maeri, and think others might enjoy reading about your own creative venture, please contact me and I'll get the kettle on! 
