Highs And Lows

If you ever want to extend your life, take a stand at a show! I find you have to exercise extreme willpower not to look at your watch during the quiet periods, otherwise you will literally find yourself counting the minutes.

That said we had a really good time at the Spring Fair in Birmingham last week. We had a record number of wholesale orders, and some really positive enquiries from retailers ranging from London department stores to Garden Centres and some lovely independent shops. I already know from last year that some of the enquiries can be real slow burners, taking months to come to fruition, but it gives us chance to manage our stock levels, as cotton prices have risen yet again, and it is getting harder to get hold of Organic Cotton yarn.
It was really nice to hear so many positive comments about our ranges from trade professionals, and it was really gratifying that so many could see the quality difference immediately.
After such a high, our week at the show ended on a sad low, with the loss of Gertrude, our gorgeous bulldog. We have had her from 8 weeks until nearly her 14th Birthday, so we are very aware how lucky we've been, and anyone who has met her will know what a character she was, always making her presence known. If you had called the office you are very likely to have had loud snoring in the background - I promise you that was Gert not me! Since I gave up my "proper job" to run Ochre And Ocre, Gert and I have spent most days together in the Ochre And Ocre office, so I have to admit to finding it a very quiet space this week. Luckily there is much to do following up from the show, catching up on office work, and sorting out stock and displays for our next big retail show, Country Living Spring Fair, keeping me occupied and my mind busy.

February Already!

Is it me or is this year flying by already! Our big wholesale trade show (The Spring Fair)is fast approaching, closely followed in March by Country Living!
 I met up with the super talented Rachel Spivey this week, at her rather lovely Leamington studio, to get the last few shots done for our brochure and online. As usual though, half our time was spent gassing about business and assorted stuff, before getting down to the actual business of photographing our new placemat range. (Check out her website by the way - she's updated it with some lovely new wedding pics).
We had to use our ingenuity when it came to finding a suitable "table" to shoot the mats on - and ended up with a coffee table balanced on top of a dressing table! Hopefully you will be none the wiser from the pictures!!

The brilliant and very patient  Lindsey has tidied up our brochure and it's winging it's way to the printers - even after several proof readings, I still spotted a major error this morning on my final read through - sometimes you just read what you want to read rather than what is actually in front of you. It's a relief to have that sent, as next week all our focus will be on the wholesale side of Ochre And Ocre. We've already had some positive responses from our mailing to the independent shops, so I'm hoping the new colourways will get a good reaction from our lovely retail customers.
I'm really pleased with how our new placemats have turned out - printed here in the UK, they have a really nice finish, and the fabric texture effect has worked in printing.
Now we just have to wait for our new Organic Cotton stock to arrive later on this month, and hopefully start selling!