Monday 17 January 2011

Introducing Emma Green Creator of Rosalind James

Here at Ugly Be Gone we are really excited to introduce one of our new sellers.  Emma Green, the creator of Rosalind James, has designed the most gorgeous and stylish laptop bags which we know you will love!  Made from real leather these bags will not only inject colour and panache, but their practical too!

Here Emma tells us her inspiring story of how she developed Rosalind James from an initial idea into the growing business we see today:-


I established Rosalind James aged 17 whilst studying for 5 A-levels back at my Sixth Form College in Yorkshire and designed my first laptop bag, The Charlotte, when I probably should have been revising!  With the opportunity to spend a lot of time waiting in train stations whilst visiting prospective Universities, I realised that the women’s work wear luggage sector wasn’t providing what the fashionable working women were clearly looking for.  Many carried two bags; a black boring polyester laptop bag (a dead giveaway for its valuable contents) and a fashionable, easy to carry handbag, all too often with the charger poking out the top.

From my keen personal interest in fashion and design, I knew that interest in fashionable workwear was growing and seeing the range of business luggage available, I spotted the gap in the market.  My motivation behind Rosalind James was to create a product which was elegant and classic, and which would inject style into women’s business luggage, providing a practical, comfortable and luxurious solution to carrying your laptop.  

With 5 A-grades at A-level under my belt and an acceptance from Exeter University to read Law with European study, I devoted more time to researching the industry in the summer of 2008.  Having decided that Rosalind James was a viable business opportunity, I started to set some foundations including trade-marking my company name and registering www.rosalindjames.co.uk.  After weeks of tirelessly searching for UK manufacturers who would take me seriously at such a young age and who were willing to produce a small test run of my laptop bags, I struck gold with a company based in Bury, and a few months later the first batch of The Charlotte bags was ready for sale.   

With no specialist business training I had to dig deep and trust my gut instinct when pushing my business forward.  I’m not afraid of getting stuck in, so undertook many of the fundamental elements of business development myself, including writing the HTML script for the website, organising a commercial photo shoot in London and training myself in graphic design to create the publicity flyers.

However the hard work started to pay off and by March 2009 I had created a fully functional e-commerce website which was ready to go.  One of the difficulties I’ve experienced has been juggling running the business with studying for my degree at Exeter, as well as working part time to fund the business, but with good time management and an strong ability to keep to deadlines I’ve been able to continue growing Rosalind James over my time at Exeter.

Rosalind James in the market.

Rosalind James can be differentiated from the competition on several factors, the most notable being that our bags are design-led, created with the customer’s needs in mind.  Every design feature has been made to make travelling easier, catering precisely to the needs of working women in terms of usability and the classic, professional aesthetic.

Other strengths include the fact that Rosalind James not only moves away from the traditional black, brown and tan leather but gives more choice than the usual “colours” offered on the market. The colour palette of cream and platinum combined with Amethyst, Sage, Slate or Rose leather provides a trans-seasonal range to cater to many tastes, maintaining the elegant and sophisticated appearance of each bag. The bags also have special features which set them apart from the competition, including the luxury suedette lining, the embroidered Lily design and the embossed RJ logo on the handle, making the product more desirable through the small touches and attention to detail. 

One of Rosalind James’ key USPs, and a distinctive element of the company’s appeal, is its heritage and our commitment to manufacturing our products in the UK. The growth of international manufacture has seen the loss of many UK businesses in this industry. As such the manufacture of Rosalind James products supports British business, providing worthwhile trade in financially difficult times and also satisfying the growing consumer desire to purchase a quality product with a traceable source.
Emma Green © 



Monday 8 November 2010

Competition Winner

You may remember the fantastic competition we had over the summer months (I know it seems a very long time ago now).  One of the lucky winners, Christina Kennedy from South Yorkshire, very kindly sent us a picture of her enjoying some of her gorgeous goodies.


Well done again to Christina, and many thanks to our lovely sellers on Ugly Be Gone who donated such fantastic gifts!

Thursday 4 November 2010

Ugly Be Gone Offers

Not long left to get fantastic discounts on the beautiful Megan Quinton range, country style goods from Ticketty Boo and creative notice board and coat racks from Mijmoj.

Offers end on 12th November so be sure to pick up a Christmas bargain before it's too late!!







Thursday 7 October 2010

What's new on Ugly Be Gone - More Beautiful Gifts & Homeware.

Over the last few weeks we have had some fantastic creative sellers join us at Ugly Be Gone, adding to the growing list of exciting products you can find on the site.  From beautiful jewellery and funky clothing to quirky stationary and glamourous kitchen attire!!

Why not take a browse around to see what you can discover, here's a sneak preview of some of our favourites.


Red Apple Note Pad - £4.50

50 Vintage Airmail Wedding Invitations & RSVP Cards - £225.00

LadyUmbrella is Friends with Sir David Attenborough T-Shirt - £24.94

Mini Vintage Cooper Daisy Ring - £12.00

Thursday 30 September 2010

Shop by Colour

Using stumble I um, well just stumbled across this Etsy feature allowing you to shop by colour.  Now for all you regular Etsy shoppers this may have been around for a while, but I have only just come across it and was impressed I must say.  

Check it out at http://www.etsy.com/color.php, it's easier to take a look rather than me describing it!    

I think the idea is brilliant, and quite a lot of fun just swirling the mouse over the colour palate.  Once you have chosen a colour only a few products are shown, however this could be due to it being a new feature and therefore may need time to organically grow.  It certainly is a novelty and a great way to come across new items that you hadn't necessarily been looking for.  

Sticking to the subject of shopping by colour, I came across this lovely online shop the other day called Red Candy.  The whole shop is dedicated to selling red home furnishings and modern interior accessories.  Some of my favourites items include a red rubber washing up bowl, a clever kitchen sponge holder, luxurious red toilet paper and a beautiful butterfly clock.


   




























Take a look at the website www.redcandy.co.uk for lots of other stylish and quirky items and let us know if you have come across anything similar!

Thursday 23 September 2010

This months Featured Seller - Dig The Earth

Kevin Connell is the talent behind Dig The Earth, a fabulous collection of affordable bold and colourful prints that would brighten up any home.  Come and find out what makes Kevin tick, how he got started and his plans for the future, in this 10 minute interview. Also why not take a look at his brilliant collection on Ugly Be Gone