Brightlingsea gift shop, Little Boat Gifts, joins ranks of Small Biz 100.
Little Boat Gifts based in Brightlingsea, Essex, will be given some time in the limelight as part of this year’s Small Biz 100, a national campaign highlighting some of the UK’s most inspiring small businesses.
Marking the 100 days building up to Small Business Saturday on December 5, the Small Biz 100 provides a major profile boost to small businesses across the UK, particularly at this challenging time. Showcasing a daily celebration of the Small Biz 100 through social media, the campaign aims to support and celebrate a vibrant range of small, community driven businesses across the UK.
Little Boat Gifts, an independent gift and bespoke framing shop, provides the local community with a great place to get all their gifts, greetings cards and framing under one roof. Founder Olivia Reilly worked for the previous owners and when they decided to close the doors of the shop back in 2015, she saw the potential to rename and rebrand it into an outlet for the small town to be proud of. Situated just off the High Street Olivia knew that getting people through the front door was going to be her first problem, and so she decided to use the shops three front windows to showcase new and exciting products. Once inside local customers and tourists alike are wowed by the number of unusual gifts that Olivia has managed to find, supplied by companies that you would not always find in small town outlet. Using smaller independent card publishers means that Little Boat Gifts has greetings cards that you can’t find just anywhere, a powerful pull that keeps regular customers returning time and time again.
Little Boat Gifts will be placed in the spotlight on October 30, with a host of great events planned to celebrate and make the most of the day. Commenting on the campaign, Olivia said, “After a rollercoaster ride of a year we were delighted to be chosen to be part of Small Biz 100, and are excited about being a part of something with so many inspiration businesses. We can’t wait until our day on the 30th of October and being able to shout about our little town and its great High Street.â€
The other small businesses being recognised cover a range of industries and professions including a florist, beauty salon, children’s entertainer, jeweller and artisan food producer among many others.
Michelle Ovens MBE, Director of Small Business Saturday UK, said “Congratulations to Little Boat Gifts for joining the Small Biz 100! This campaign highlights the amazing, positive impact small firms have on communities across the UK. Given the phenomenally tough time small businesses have had, and the special role they played supporting communities in lockdown, it’s vital we continue to support them as this crisis continues. This year’s Small Business Saturday is going to be the most important one yet, and were determined it will also be the best.â€
Now in its eighth year in the UK, Small Business Saturday has grown significantly each year, with a record turnout of 17.6 million people choosing to shop small on the day last year, generating an estimated £800m.
This year Small Business Saturday takes place on December 5, 2020.
