The Artisan Baby Co is run by Claire and Gemma, both hardworking mums with a passion for all things baby! They run a blog on parenting as well as hosting The Artisan Baby Fair at Delapre Abbey in Northampton.
What made you take the plunge and start this business?
Claire - After forging a strong friendship from our work in the wedding industry we were
determined to build a successful business together that balanced our love for all things creative with our growing babies. Totally on the same page, the idea, the business name and the wheels were all set into motion after a phone call while the bubs were off having mid-morning naps! Both loving motherhood and juggling a business, we are two honest, fun loving mums that are looking to share our experience of ‘real’ parenting with the world!
Gemma – Claire and I clicked the moment we met when working a wedding together many years ago. Since that moment we have always been racking our brains for a way we could combine our talents together. We both had different experiences of having young babies and of how we felt whilst we were pregnant. The light bulb moment happened whilst we were discussing a wedding fair and how we liked the idea of getting to meet the faces behind a business before investing in them and eureka The Artisan Baby Co was born.
What was your original vision for the company and how did you have to adapt this when
it came to actually setting up?
C: I originally saw the company focusing a lot on the baby fairs and Gemma saw a wonderful blog platform. Working together on the areas we both excel at; we have been able to make a success of both the blog and the fairs. As the process started to unfold and the website began to be created, we also saw the gap for the Artisan Friends side to the brand too which is ultimately a directory of brands we believe in. This is certainly an area I’d love to see grow as having one place with all the amazing brands out there listed in category order, would make any mums life easier!
G: Using wedding fairs we had exhibited at and been to as a starting block we wanted parents to be able to interact and see the quality of products before they parted with their money. I love finding new brands and moving away from the mainstream so this is the experience we wanted to give to our parents; to be able to showcase the best small brands they may never have heard of!
You had your first fair at the Abbey back in the summer. What were the pros and cons of
running the event and what were the challenges involved in bringing your vision to life?
C: Ultimately cost is always going to be a challenge for any start up and with businesses of our own, we had to be careful to not overspend on our first show. Being both creative and full of ideas, we had to spend time reining each other in! The pro for me was seeing the queue of families (in the rain!) before the show doors even opened. A very proud moment for me!
G: Like Claire said having a queue was amazing. The night before I hardly slept as I thought no one would turn up. Hearing great feedback from our stall holders was the icing on the cake. Con we ended up a couple of people short of help on the day so it meant Claire and I were running around like crazy. The rain also was a bit of a dampener for me as we had spent a lot of time planning an outside chill out area with caterers and this didn’t get used at all. We learnt a lot from that first fair!
The next fair is in December. How will you be expanding on the success of your first
fair?
C: After selling all the exhibitor spaces we have decided to grow the fair and have worked closely with Delapre Abbey to open up their exclusive medieval rooms too! This will be allowing us to add an extra 12 exhibitors to the show, giving us a wider variety of products and services. We’ll also be running our very successful taster sessions again and have even got a couple of extra fun additions coming along for those that want to bring their toddlers along to the fair too!
G: More stalls! More variety and some extra surprises to be announced soon. There is also the established Santa's Grotto at Delapre so that is a great addition.
Who are your current favourite artisan baby brands?
C: This is one I just can’t answer I’m afraid as we literally love all the brands we work with! The companies we have chosen to represent at the fairs and as our Artisan Friends not only produce beautiful products but they are also run by the most amazingly inspirational people too. We simply love them all and watching each of them move through their journey to grow their businesses organically has been a pleasure.
G: It is to hard to name our favourites. We don’t allow any company we don’t firmly believe in. If we wouldn’t buy from them or use their services we couldn’t expect our customers to either. My low bank balance is testament to how much I love every brand we have.
What do you think will be the biggest trends in nursery décor next year?
C: Gosh, I wish I had time to keep on top of trends! Ha! If I had to guess, I’d go with soft pastel colours in various prints. We’re seeing a lot of rainbow and Scandi prints filtering through and replacing the bright jungle themes. I’ve never been one to follow these trends though- I say to decorate as you like!
G: Good question and maybe one to ask some of the brands we have exhibiting. Definitely Scandi minimalist designs.
What makes a brand "artisan" for you and what advice would you give to new baby
companies who want to have a high-end feel?
C: To us, an Artisan brand offers elements of our key values – Unique, sustainable, lovingly
created, supportive and nourishing. All of the faces behind the businesses put as much love and devotion into their brand as we do. You’ll see that most of our companies have an amazing high-end look with the quality of their items and the way they finish their product with their packaging. Good marketing and attention to detail is key too- images taken in good light instantly jumps your product range into a new category!
G: For me it’s their quality and uniqueness. Knowing that the product isn’t being reproduced
thousands of times. Sustainability is key for me so being a cottage industry, supporting a charity and using ethical materials are all important.
All your exhibitors are hand-selected to ensure the highest quality and a shared ethos.
What would you say was the biggest gap in the market right now or what products are
you finding hardest to source to a high standard?
C: Teething products for sure. There is still a lot of plastic and silicone out there which is crazy considering the environmental stance that’s flooding the Artisan baby world right now and although there are a few companies making the gorgeous wooden items, these are few and far between. There are many gorgeous examples of teething jewellery out there but we urge parents to ensure they are compliant and have passed safety testing as opposed to just choosing a company for the pretty items they’re producing.
G: Toys! It is hard to find children's toys that are safe, not full of plastic and not expensive. I would love to find a sustainable toy manufacturer who could come and exhibit at the show.
What do you think is the biggest challenge of being a working parent and what would be
your golden rule for managing the two?
C: It’s so easy to feel as though you’re not giving every aspect of your life the dedication it
deserves. Being spread too thin is my biggest challenge. A recent blog I’ve written about my return to work tells it as it is… “I’ve forgotten how to be a good wife; my son doesn’t get quality mum time; instead he shares me with my laptop or while my face is staring at my mobile screen and the housework has taken a complete nosedive which stresses me to the max." But this is the realism of being a working mum in today's society as we simply want to do everything at our best. My advice, learn to split your time. Allocating time slots each night to each area has allowed me to feel more in control and give my son the time he deserves while the technology is safely tucked away.
G: The juggle and the financial impact. Before I had Devon I had a successful well paying job
which I chose to leave because in my eyes it wasn’t a practical role to be in and have a family. Before I was financially equal to my partner but now I have taken a huge salary sacrifice, which I find mentally hard not being able to contribute what I used to and my husband having to support us more. However I now have the flexibility and freedom to be there for my daughter. My advice which I have to remind myself of all the time is to not be so hard on yourself - you are doing the best you can and if you are self employed like myself its okay to take time out from work and relax. After all, that’s one of the main reasons people become self employed.
As you know, this blog is called Alt Mummy. What would be your one ‘alternative’ bit of
advice to any new mum?
C: Don’t be afraid to say no. This is time you won’t get back- one on one time with your new little person. If you want to sit on the sofa in your PJ's and not have visitors, that’s OK. Never be afraid to say no in the fear of not pleasing others.
G: Listen to all the advice and gather all the information you feel you need but make your own decisions. It’s your child, your body, do what’s right for you and never be pressured into
something you don’t feel comfortable with. Everyone has a different parenting technique and views so we need to do what’s right for us.
Gemma and Claire have been kind enough to offer a lucky reader two VIP tickets with early bird entry to their fair on the 8th of December and two goody bags to be collected on arrival at the fair. Head over to the Alt Mummy Instagram or Facebook now to enter!
The fair is an eclectic mix of the finest- handpicked retailers and suppliers for babes and tots.
With a focus on nourishment and enrichment, the shows are created to promote smaller independent retailers to provide a day full of unexpected finds. Held in locations full of ambience and relaxing vibes, stop and enjoy an artisan coffee whilst soaking up the atmosphere. The shows location aims to open eyes and doors to help promote the local community and the services on offer for parents. Support and education for parents and expectant parents is at the heart of what Artisan Baby do, so stop and chat with one of the many groups exhibiting.
NEXT FAIR
Sunday, 8th December at Delapré Abbey, Northampton
TIMINGS 10:30am to 2:30pm VIP Ticket Access from 10am
PRICES 🎟 VIP Goody Bag Tickets … Adults – £4.00 🎟 Advance Tickets … Adults – £2.50 🎟 On the Door … Adults – £3.00 🎟 Children Under 16 – Free
TASTER SESSIONS 10:30am – Baby Sensory 11:30am- Slot TBC 12:30am- Slot TBC
12pm- Hypnobirthing 13:30pm- Pregnancy Yoga
LIVE TALKS Information with talk times to follow
SPONSORS
Two-D Photography
Find out more about the company and get your fair tickets here: https://theartisanbabyco.com/