Peruvian Knitwear
Combining a career and motherhood is seldom easy, but it was a problem that wasn’t going to daunt entrepreneur, Amanda Ruiz.
Expecting her second child, Amanda was determined to set up her own business but struggling with the direction she should take. With a background in branding and marketing, her first instinct was to provide advice to businesses which were looking to increase the effectiveness of their promotion, but eventually it was her love of artisan products that won the day.
Some two years earlier when her son was born, Amanda had been overwhelmed with wonderful gifts from her husband’s family in Peru. Handmade from beautifully soft Alpaca wool and knitted in stunning rainbow colours, the baby clothes that little Felix wore were soon the focus of admiration at nursery, mums’ groups and amongst friends. Amanda, who has always had a passion for arts and crafts, was quick to realise that this demand could be a successful basis on which to set up her own business. Her family connections in Peru opened up an opportunity for Amanda to have clothes and baby goods designed and made to her own specifications.
In December 2006, a visit to Peru gave Amanda the chance to source samples and carry out her first real test of the market. The clothes she brought back were eagerly snapped up by mums for themselves and their children, allowing Amanda to find out what sold well and to make her first profit, which she immediately ploughed back into the business.
By 2007, Amanda was clear in her own mind that she had the drive and enthusiasm necessary to make a success of her ideas, but was very aware that she lacked some of the skills that would be a necessity when she started trading for real. It was this awareness that brought her to the Colchester Business Enterprise Agency (Colbea) where she attended a course on how to set up and plan your business. The course was held over a series of evenings, making it easy for Amanda to fit learning around her family commitments. “I learnt about VAT and tax and all the other things that are so important when you work on your own”, says Amanda, “and the course gave me access to a host of resources”. “I had previously worked in large companies where there was a great deal of support and cashflow wasn’t an issue. It was soon clear that working for yourself means every penny counts in developing the business.”
Peruvian Knitwear began trading in September 2007. The main avenue to market is the internet; an e-commerce site allows visitors to look at the clothes in detail and have purchases delivered directly to their door. Amanda set up the site with the help of a friend who has technical expertise, but she worked long hours to put it together and get the all-important photography just right. All this had to be done without much in the way of family support – her husband works long hours, her parents live in Worcester and her in-laws are in Peru – which made it hard to juggle the demands of a small son, a newly arrived daughter and the business. But juggle she did, and the result is an excellent site that is expanding its product range all the time.
Amanda plans to source new items when she returns to Peru this spring. All the clothes are made by local artisans who work in good conditions and are paid piecemeal for their work, enabling them to earn a wage that makes a real difference to the way they live. Amanda is determined to trade ethically, even if that means her profit margins need to be slightly lower than some of her competitors. She designs some of the clothes herself, bringing in new ideas and colourways for her skilled team of crafts people to produce. She plans to source a brand new summer range – much of what is available at present is warm and cosy, which is perfect for the British winter but not so good for coping with seasonal fluctuations in trade – as well as increasing the number of items for new-borns and adults. With her fluent Spanish, honed design skills and links with skilled knitters and weavers, Amanda looks set to achieve her objectives.
Since the business began, Peruvian Knitwear has received a lot of press coverage with articles appearing in local and national papers and on internet sites, and recently Amanda has become a finalist in a local business competition. Meeting Amanda one cannot fail but be impressed by her drive and enthuiasm, but perhaps best of all is seeing her little girl wearing one of the gorgeous Alpaca chullos (hats with ear-flaps) – it’s a real ‘ahhh’ moment!
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