Rachael Wall, director of Sittingwell, explains why the business should win the home business category of the Guardian Small Business Showcase competition:
As therapists we wanted to offer our clinical expertise to a wider audience. We witnessed the frustration of patients who didn’t know which product to buy or bought the wrong thing, which just gathered dust. So we set up Sittingwell, an online resource and shop for back care products.
With no stockroom, warehouse, office space or shop front, and little capital, it seemed the perfect idea. From our dining room table, we sourced and contacted suppliers of quality back care products, arranged terms and drop shipping by them for all but one product.
We filmed videos to answer FAQs such as ‘Should I use one or two pillows in bed?’ and bring products to life - the next best thing to visiting a shop. We created content videos at every opportunity - the clinic, home, in hotels; when it snowed we produced a “shovelling snow” video on the front lawn.
By monitoring sales and as cash flow improved, we bulk bought top-selling items, further improving profit margins. The loft and spare room became the warehouse. Sales have grown to the point that we enlisted more help earlier this year.
Figuring out ways to make things happen has allowed us to grow and sell worldwide. It’s also helped us to link with Brunel University to develop our first branded product with meetings on the phone and at home.
All entries which meet the competition criteria are published and our judging panel select a shortlist of the top three for each category. Winners are announced at an awards ceremony in summer 2016.
