PUTTING ON THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS
Local entrepreneur plays Santa as England goes into lockdown again
When times are good it can be hard to believe things will ever change, let alone come to a grinding halt. At the beginning of this year Paul Rowlett's corporate gifts and branding company was on track to hit record sales and achieve all of its yearly targets, but that was before the global pandemic. Now however, the intrepid entrepreneur is determined to 'play Santa' to put the sparkle into Christmas.
As Covid-19 struck and the country was forced into lockdown in March, almost overnight, the market for promotional goods evaporated and trading all but stopped. Everything Branded was 97% down on sales and Paul Rowlett and his team were left wondering how to scale back the business without destroying the livelihoods of their staff.
This time last year things were very different for the dynamic entrepreneur and his burgeoning business. The company was deploying training and outreach programmes; had partnered with the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy at the local Leicester College to inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs; had opened office space in Las Vegas, and Paul appeared on Channel 4's TV series 'The Secret Teacher ' when he went undercover into a school in Hertfordshire to identify and support underperforming students.
Covid-19 taught Paul Rowlett to adapt to new conditions and that reaching out to new markets can be crucial to survival. He noted the rise in online purchasing and quickly created a new company - EverythingPrinted to reach the B2C market offering single quantity goods with a custom design in quantities starting from one unit as opposed to thousands of units, all available online.
Now Paul has expanded the offering with a range of Christmas gifts that will be a lockdown lifesaver as we face an uncertain Christmas. They include original gifts for him, her, the kids and pets as well as advent calendars, decorations and Christmas cards. These include beautiful personalised rocking horses, candles, baubles, stockings and cards that can be personalised to make Christmas, in many instances separate from our loved ones, really special.
"Our Covid journey has been tough, so tough that there were days when it seemed like the lights would go out on my thriving 10 year old business, however pivoting our business to reach the consumer in the light of changed spending habits, has been the right decision.
"With England going into lockdown for the second time, I want to ensure that our customers have access to a range of original and personal gifts that make this Christmas as magical as it can be."
For more information call Melanie Faldo on 01234 721198 or emailredcarpetcomms@gmail.com