Partner Article

Vintage trade in full bloom for Manchester mum

A Failsworth mother is enjoying the flexibility of running her own show, having opened a second-hand and vintage goods business with help from one of the UK’s leading providers of free business support, Blue Orchid.

Julie Henshaw, 40, launched Lazee Daisy at the end of June and has already grown a loyal customer base. Trading from Oldham Road antiques mill, Empire House, Lazee Daisy sources one-off retro and vintage items including clothing, shoes, handbags, jewellery, homewares, and fancy dress, selling them at affordable prices.

A former florist, Julie had been looking for work near to her home for almost six months when she started to seriously consider self-employment. Not only did it offer a source of income, being self-employed would give Julie the freedom to fit the work around her own schedule and life as a mother. She noticed the consistent level of demand for quality retro goods in the area while volunteering for a local charity shop. Julie explains: “Everyone is on a budget these days and vintage style, particularly from the 60s and 70s, is always in fashion. So it made sense to combine these two ideas to really cater to the market.”

Julie sought advice from her local job centre on new business funding, and was put in contact with Blue Orchid to access professional start-up expertise. Paired with her own business advisor, Julie was able to formally evaluate her ideas and shape a strong business plan. A series of group workshops introduced Julie to the business fundamentals necessary to launch and sustain a successful commercial operation. One, a social media training course, was especially illuminating. “I’ve seen people advertise on Facebook before, but I didn’t realise it could play such a significant role in marketing Lazee Daisy,” Julie said. “As a passion-project, I’ve been making hand-knitted dog jumpers for a few years now and my business advisor Gwen suggested that as well as selling them in the shop I should try using online marketplaces like Etsy. I do great trade online now with that advice, and raising my profile on the web has helped to educate more customers about the offering and what’s unique.”

Julie aims to take on her own staff as the business grows, with plans to expand Lazee Daisy’s fancy dress offering into a hire service in coming months. She found Blue Orchid’s start-up support invaluable. She said: “My business advisor Gwen Murphy gave me great advice – it’s thanks to her that I have a website, for instance. I’ve learnt so much from undertaking this process, and I’m continually getting brilliant feedback from customers which shows that I am doing things right. I felt supported and encouraged throughout my business planning, and feel confident about the future working for myself.”

Blue Orchid business advisor Gwen Murphy said: “People still start businesses without taking steps to equip themselves with best practice knowledge and some basic tools for growth. Julie has been tremendously proactive about her start-up, taking advantage of the training available to her as well as embracing the planning process. It’s great that things are going so well just three months in.”

Would-be entrepreneurs like Julie can take up one-to-one business advice and support through the Start Up Now service, delivered across Greater Manchester by Blue Orchid. The service is offered from various local venues with professional business advisors based throughout the community to implement a complete package of support helping individuals launch their business.

For more information about the services provided by Blue Orchid, please visit http://www.blueorchid.co.uk/

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by PR Agency One .