Now seems like just the right moment to get a little reflective. We've taken the last few weeks away from work (mostly) + there's nothing like a bit of space to reset + refocus. We've come a long way in 12 months with a lot of hard work, tears, mistakes, wins + luck along the way. It's brought us closer as sisters (literally, we've seen each other loads!) + given us a growing sense of confidence in business. It's been a year of connecting with other small business owners, finding support + comfort in knowing our struggles are pretty normal...
Happy birthday to us! September marked one whole year since we launched Mustard in the UK so we threw ourselves a party!! Being your own boss(es) means it's all too easy to let the days slip by without really stopping to see how far you've come, to actually reflect and maybe even to reward yourself for your hard work. So we did the one thing that all small business owners know how to do well: create more work for ourselves! ;) Yep, throwing a party takes a lot of work but we totally think the fun we had made it worth it!...
This week we let our stockists and customers know that we are increasing the price of The Skinny. We sent out emails and we shared stories on instagram all the while holding our breath and hoping it would all be ok. We were nervous because people love it when you reduce prices, not so much when you raise them! We received a message on instagram asking "why the sudden jump in price?" so we thought we would open up about why. When first creating our products we wanted to use the minimum packaging that the lockers would need to travel...
I'm going to start this blog post by saying this feels a little funny to write. Why? Because the way The Midi and The Lowdown were brought into this world felt a bit more like a baby being born in the back the car on the way to hospital with heavy metal booming on the radio than a soothing water birth surrounded by candles and a chilled Spotify playlist. Let's just say, it was a little hectic. The beginning. Way back before Mustard was officially a thing we were dreaming up the two door lockers. We had so many ideas and...
Instagram has a way of making everything look easy. Yeah sure you can run a business, all you need is some motivational quotes and a coffee on a Monday morning right? (FYI neither of us drink coffee and Mondays get way too much negativity!) There are brands that have really inspired us as well as our friends in small businesses and it's easy to look outside and see everyone killing it and think that it's possible for us to do the same. In many ways we are. Here we are today, much further than we imagined we be. Our first year...
This month we are focusing on showing some love to our stockists on social media so we thought it would be good to share our experience of selling wholesale. This is a two part blog post (click here for part one) where we'll talk about some of the key thing to consider if you are planning to go down the wholesale route. Think of it as a mini guide from our personal experience. Hopefully it will be helpful if it's something you're new to, too! How do you find stockists? Trade Shows When we dreamed up Mustard we knew wholesale would be crucial to...
This month we are focusing on showing some love to our stockists on social media so we thought it would be good to share our experience of selling wholesale. This is a two part blog post where we'll talk about some of the key thing to consider if you are planning to go down the wholesale route. Think of it as a mini guide from our personal experience. Hopefully it will be helpful if it's something you're new to, too! Preparing to wholesale One of the first things you'll need to think about is the price. It's pretty standard for a...
One of the scariest decisions we have made in our first year of business was to take a break from it. From the very beginning, Mustard has consumed our minds, our time + our hearts. There are days where it feels like it's the centre of the universe + it can being really challenging to separate from it even just for the evening. We counted 8 different channels that we can be contacted on and because we operate in two hemispheres it means we are switched on 24 hours a day. It is often said that running a business is like living...
Our aim for our colour palette was to create options that were versatile, beautiful and worked well for mixing and matching. Whether the lockers are for a living room, bedroom, office or hallway we wanted there to be a colour that fits with your space. White has been a popular choice in Australia, the sunshine and beach definitely have a lot to do with it as people gravitate to bright open spaces. The Olive has been a big hit on instagram and has a steady following of plant lovers, it's definitely a versatile colour that works for grown ups and...
I’m going to let you in on a little secret… Me: I moved to Australia 7 years ago with my son and husband who had been raving about how great his hometown Newcastle was for years. Our relationship didn’t last long after the move but my love for Newcastle and Australia grew and grew. So, I found myself single and a long way from home with a curly haired 3 year old and no money. Being a mother and working is, let’s be honest, bloody hard at the best of times. The hours of the jobs I was offered didn’t...
16th February 2018. Wake up at 6 am, 1 hour commute to work, 9 hours at work, leave, travel to Heathrow and jump on a plane. One outfit change, a little bit of sleep and 4 movies later I arrive in Sydney to four very smiley people - my sister Becca, her husband Jono, and their sons Dylan and Ellis, the best nephews in the world! But before I can even see the Australian sun, the work begins on the car journey home. Making plans for every minute of the next few days as we were about to launch our new brand: Mustard. Were...
Today I woke up (and Jess went to bed) to this article going live on The Design Files. If you don't know, it is 'Australia's Top Design Blog' so it's kind of a BIG deal. The truth is, I also felt a moment of panic, the imposter syndrome kick in, the 'what if I'm found out' moment. It may or may not surprise you to know that I have screwed a lot of things up with Mustard already, there are things I'd already like to go back and redo. It may or may not surprise you that every day I...
