Member Article

Interview: Upcycling entrepreneur Donna Fenn talks Grand Designs and worldwide expansion

Since launching her North Yorkshire-based upcycling enterprise Remade in Britain in November 2013, Donna Fenn’s on-trend venture has gone from strength to strength.

Remade in Britain is an upcycling marketplace, where sellers from the professional to the hobbyist can place their products as an alternative to Etsy or notonthehighstreet.com.

Here she talks to Bdaily about what gave her the idea for the venture, her plans for the future, and big news about Grand Designs Live 2015 on which Remade in Britain was asked to star by Kevin McCloud.

What gave you the idea for the venture?

There are so many hidden upcyclers in the UK, as a hobby or a bona fide business I wanted a place to showcase them. Previously they could sell their products on Etsy or Notonthehighstreet.com - but as these websites grow it becomes more difficult for smaller retailers to compete and often they end up on page 50.

My father was part of the post-war “make do and mend” generation, he grew his own fruit and vegetables, made everything himself and would hate to throw anything away if it could be used again or for something else.

After a conversation with a friend, whose daughter upcycles products and market research into upcycling, I found an American version called Hipcycle and was able to cherrypick the best parts of companies doing a similar thing, but from new offices in Knaresborough.

Why was an online presence so important to you?

Website development was entirely necessary and so was engaging with potential retailers and buyers on social media, these days you can’t totally rely on normal advertising anymore. Now we have 2000 followers and our presence is growing by the day.

Social media creates a sense of community and an increased brand awareness, as well as being able to reach a much larger target audience who are tech-savvy and looking for unique products.

What are your plans for expansion?

In terms of expansion we will definitely be doing more of the same . We have 300+ registered sellers and aim to have 600 by the summer.

We are also planning to diversify the business into a one stop shop for supplies and salvages and become a raw materials supplier for upcyclying as well as the finished products. It may be a cliche but it’s so true that one man’s rubbish is another man’s treasure.

Also our colleague Michelle joined in June 2014 and we will no doubt need further help as the business expands.

Why do you think there has been such demand for upcycling?

I think the popularity in upcycling is down to people becoming more environmentally aware, it is becoming more ingrained in our psyche to recycle, and be more environmentally conscious.

Worldwide, Scandanavians are definitely ahead of us in terms of recycling, and America and Australia have also shown a greater interest in recycling and upcycling.

We’ve just bought domains for this anticipated international expansion, and get orders from abroad come through regularly.

We’ve kept all British sellers however, and have none from abroad in an attempt to keep it this way so customers know their products are not mass produced from somewhere in Asia.

As well as this, Britishness as a brand sells, domestically and abroad. Celebrity trends and supporters of upcycling such as Kirstie Allsop and Kevin McCloud have also fuelled this interest. We have even been asked to be on Grand Designs and have invited our retailers to come with us to be on the live show this year.

Do you have any advice for any budding entrepreneurs online?

• Be very clear with your brief for your website and your business
• Be patient when waiting for website, mostly necessary to outsource
• Do your research, market research into your area, see what other people have done

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .