Ladies who lunch

Lunch with Jane Lindsey of Snapdragon was really good - great to have a chance to chat with someone who knows the ups and downs of small business life so well. We seem to have many of the same problems, but it seems that for both of us the advantages of working for ourselves doing something we love make it worthwhile.

One of the problems that we definitely both find is that because we haven't made a 'name' for ourselves yet outside our local area, it is really hard to get people in the wider world to understand the integrity of our products and the value that we are giving in terms of individuality, the production etc. I certainly find that it is impossible to charge what I need to for the products that we make here in Scotland. One of the things that we thought we could work on together is to try and raise awareness of small businesses like ours that are involved in manufacturing and crafts in Scotland and often run by working mothers. There are a million reasons why it's great to be based up here, but one of the big disadvantages is that we are miles from the marketing hubs.

It also became apparent that life running these businesses is all ups and downs - one minute someone has spotted something you do and supported it and you feel fantastic, or a good order comes in and everything seems worthwhile and then the next, the orders have dried up and you wonder why you are bothering and the guilt about how much time you're giving the children kicks in! Can't win - but we'll have fun trying!