business advice - Craft Focus Magazine

news round-up
IN BRIEF...
Artesano Yarns sponsor student
Artesano Yarns have recently decided to sponsor
an outstanding student, Georgie Troon, who
is in her third and final year of Textile and
Surface Design BA (Hons) Degree at Bucks New
University, focusing on knitted textiles. She is
using both Artesano and Manos yarns for the
final knitted pieces and has also got the support of
the Ercol furniture company. The collection will
include both fashion and interior pieces and will
be shown at the International Textiles Design show
Indigo in Paris and at New Designers in London.
Further info www.artesanoyarns.co.uk.
Hook 1, Pass it On
The Crafts Council and UK Hand-knitting Association initiative Craft Club has just
launched its second scheme Hook 1 Pass it On after a successful first year of activity.
There are now over 300 Craft Clubs currently teaching young people craft skills across
the UK and the aim is to double this number by 2012. When Knit 1 Pass it On was
initially launched, over 140 volunteers attended specialist training sessions in order to
learn how to pass on their skills to others and there are now over 1700 volunteers
nationwide. These include parents, members of local WI groups and lots of enthusiastic
crafters who wanted to share their passion for craft. Linda Barker, TV personality and
Crafts Council champion said, “I can remember my mum teaching my siblings and I craft
skills as a child and I immediately fell in love with making. It is a great gift to pass on
skills that remain with you for life. I am so pleased that Craft Club is reaching so many
children across the UK.” Hook 1 Pass it On will teach young people how to crochet and
will run alongside Knit 1 Pass it On that was launched last year.
A sharing alternative
StaffShare is a simple but revolutionary idea which offers an alternative to
redundancy. It is a new on-line ‘skill exchange’ secondment service which enables
organisations to retain skills by ‘hiring out’ staff to other organisations on a
temporary basis, and sharing the costs. StaffShare is literally an internet marketplace
for employers to upload and share employee profiles and CVs, including their skills
and expected costs. It facilitates ‘on-line introductions’ between employers wanting
valuable skills with those employers trying to cut costs by finding temporary or
even permanent new roles for their under-utilised employees. David Lennan,
former Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce and founding
Director of StaffShare, said: “There are practical alternatives. StaffShare delivers
immediate cost savings yet crucially retains the skill and experience for later –
perhaps after a period of weeks, months, 12 months or more.”
Further info www.staffshare.com.
Young Entrepreneur of the Year
Nomination
Deramores’ co-founder, 29-year-old Oliver
Mustoe-Playfair, has been nominated for the
coveted Young Entrepreneur of the Year award at
the 2011 Kent Excellence in Business Awards. Since
going live just eight months ago, Kent-based online
retailer of knitting supplies, Deramores, is now
the biggest retailer of its kind in the UK. Set up by
web developers turned entrepreneurs, Oliver and
Steve Hollis, also 29, Deramores already employs
16 members of staff and has an annual turnover
in excess of £2 million. They have just launched
a new online store, a cross stitch superstore called
Wickfords. A third is in the pipeline and they
aim to have a total of five brands serving the craft
markets by the end of 2011.
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