I don’t know if you have heard of Small Business Saturday. Small Business Saturday exists to support, inspire and promote small businesses. I am so excited that HŪF Design has been selected as 1 of the 100 small business that are being featured one for each day of the 100 days leading up to Small Business Saturday on 3rd December 2016. Below is the press release issued by the Small Business Saturday team….
A small start-up business based in Calne, between Chippenham and Swindon in Wiltshire, which creates innovative, stylish products that address real world problems in the equestrian market, has been named among the 100 small businesses in the UK to be celebrated by Small Business Saturday, the campaign that culminates in the UK’s dedicated day for small businesses on December 3rd.HŪF Design, founded by Emma Lawton, won the BETA International 2015 Innovation Award for its first product, SKŪP, an innovative feed scoop for horses and other animals. It provides a distinctive take on the classic feed scoop featuring improved measuring functionality alongside ergonomic and usability enhancements including a non-twist handle and its trademark teeth used to loosen compacted feed. The company will now be among the select number of businesses to be featured by the Small Business Saturday campaign one per day for the 100 days leading up to Small Business Saturday itself.
Owner Emma saw the need for a new feed scoop when feeding her horse one freezing January morning and had to take her hands out of my gloves to break up the frozen feed. “The SKŪP is my first product and I aim to develop a range of innovative products. Why does the feed room have to be a dull and boring place? I want to bring innovation and colour into it,” Emma explains. “It takes a great deal of courage for an individual to set up their own enterprise. I want to be one of those small innovative and entrepreneurial companies that the government is relying on to grow the economy. I like the fact that Small Business Saturday celebrates small businesses and provides a supportive and encouraging community around the UK where owners can share their own experiences and challenges.”
Small Business Saturday is already the UK’s most successful small business campaign. This is the fourth year of the campaign, which last year saw £623m spent with small businesses across the UK on Small Business Saturday, an increase of £119m or 24 per cent on the previous year. The campaign trended at number one in the UK on Twitter on the day with more than 100,000 campaign-related tweets being sent. Over 75% of local councils supported the campaign, giving considerable national reach into local communities. The campaign is a great nationwide promotional and marketing tool for small businesses. It is totally free to participate and any small businesses can get involved – from one-man-bands, through to a high growth office, and from tradesmen to social media gurus. In addition to the big day, the campaign also delivers help and advice alongside opportunities to connect with other small businesses. In short, Small Business Saturday exists to support, inspire and promote small businesses. “The British public has a great affection for small businesses and we continue to see that grow year on year. Small Business Saturday is an exceptional example of collaboration and co-operation with small businesses teaming up in communities around the UK,” explains Campaign Director Michelle Ovens. “Although the campaign focuses on one day, the goal is to have a lasting impact on small businesses by changing mind-sets, so that people make it their mission to support small businesses all year round.
Most people in this country own a small business, work for a small business or know somebody who does, so supporting a small business on Small Business Saturday is absolutely personal.” Small Business Saturday, which is a grassroots, not-for-profit campaign, was originally founded by American Express in the U.S. in 2010 and it remains the principal supporter of the campaign in the UK, as part of its on-going commitment to encourage consumers to shop small. The campaign also benefits from the backing of leading business organisations including the Federation of Small Businesses and Enterprise Nation. The campaign is also supported by PRS For Music, TalkTalk Business, Vistaprint, Post Office and Clear Channel Logos, digital banners, a social media guide and toolkits will be available to download from the website www.smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com and can be displayed online or on premises. Businesses around the country can also upload information to the ‘My Small Business Finder’ on the website (www.smallbusinesssaturdayuk.com) on what special events or promotional offers they will be running for Small Business Saturday. More information on Small Business Saturday can also be found on the Small Business Saturday Facebook page (www.facebook.com/smallbusinesssaturdayuk) and Twitter feed (@SmallBizSatUk). Well I am delighted to say that I have been selected as one of the Small Business 100! I’m not allowed to say exactly when my day is but keep an eye out for offers and competitions….. HŪF Design will be an exhibitor at BETA International 2017 from 22nd – 24th January.