Handmade is it worth the money?

As a customer is cost important or would you prefer to have something individual? When I started Artisans-uk I had an idealistic point of view that naturally customers would prefer something unique and handmade as opposed to a mass produced product. However, when you are faced with a barrage of ‘How much’? one can question one's judgement and wonder am I barking up the wrong tree? At the start of my business venture I soon became demoralised and wondered if I was indeed going down the wrong path. The easy option would have been to buy lots of cheap products and instantly set up shop.

I decided to take the other route and make life more challenging for myself, which was to prove more difficult but so much more rewarding. I have met so many talented people over the past year all of whom offer something unique. One person in particular stands out and that is Jane Pennington of Stone-Me.

She is a jewellery designer offering a lovely range of handmade jewellery. Jane is in a particularly difficult market as there appears to be masses of jewellery designers but few offering quality products. She has embraced the art and works with natural stones. It has been so refreshing to find someone else who although the market is tough has stuck with it and is now enjoying success.

The other aspect of my business is the Eco friendly side. This is demonstrated in the fact that by sourcing products made locally this cuts down on the Carbon Footprint, and we also re-cycle all our packaging.

I hope this business model will appeal to more of you than not, as I feel that although there are a few companies who use the Union Jack as a marketing tool, we at Artisans-uk can confidently boast that we can truly offer handmade products and be proud to support our British talent. Yes things may appear slightly more expensive but who said they wanted the same as everyone else - it is time to go for something different and consider it as an investment. Who knows these products may well turn out to be the heirlooms of the future!