Small Business Spotlight

For this issue, we spoke to Abigail Robertson who is the brains and talent behind small business, Derven Designs.

What inspired you to start Derven Designs?

Absolute boredom. Just like everyone else when the pandemic hit my very busy life just stood still. I managed to entertain the summer lockdown with no problem, but once we went into one in winter, I just found myself in a slump. Whilst scrolling through TikTok, I kept finding resin videos and this led to me looking into it a bit more, and then just having one of those moments going “what’s the worst that could happen?”. So I bought a starter kit and instantly, I was hooked! I ended up having a pile-up of various items I had made and I thought I’d see if anyone would be interested in buying them, and they were. I then started looking into what was involved in running a small business and now here we are.

Where does the name Derven Designs come from?

I think many businesses have gone through the struggle of deciding a name and I had a notepad full of various names, but it was my mother who came up with the idea. Derven Designs is named after my family home – Derven is the name of the house, it was built by my Nana and Papa and named after my father and uncle; Derek and Steven.

How do you ensure your products are as sustainable as possible?

I pride myself on making products for customers that are for life, this being because the majority of my products are custom-made, meaning that it is personalised to the individual. This helps ensure that the products don’t end up in the bin and are part of their home/life for a long time. The products are made durable enough to support this long life span as well. The resin I use is non-toxic and chemical resistant, as I previously mentioned, I mainly make custom-made products, however I do have a small store of ready-made items, these are made from any left-over resin from my orders. This reduces any waste. All my moulds are reusable so the only thing I need to restock is the resin which keeps delivery emission low. When it comes to packaging the products, I use gift bags for jewellery and keyrings that can be reused by the customer and for anything larger, I wrap it in 100% recyclable tissue paper. If posting any products, I keep any boxes and bubble wrap from deliveries to my house and I reuse them. I now make my own stickers as well. I am still learning and still developing Derven Designs to be as ethical and sustainable as possible, especially as I am branching out into vinyl printing and pyrography. I spend a lot of time researching how I can produce sustainable products especially when I find a product or a different way of creating products that help improve sustainability – I am right on it.

What is your favourite thing you’ve made so far?

I love the trinket trays, I get to add sparkle, paint and vinyl into the same product and it is so versatile in its use. I have seen them be used as a trinket tray, candle holder, soap dispenser holder and more. I think my favourite one I have made is the “Shoot to the Moon” tray. However, my customer favourite have been the space coasters and they’re great fun to make.

What advice would you give to people considering starting a small business right now?

You have to love what you’re doing or there is no point in doing it. So many people have started small businesses during lockdown so it is really competitive. One week you will have lots of sales, and the next you don’t, and you just need to be ready to ride the wave. The feeling you get when someone absolutely loves something you have handmade is definitely worth it.

Is there anything right now you want to continue the voice on?

Sounds cheesy, but working with teenagers. I always encourage them to do what makes them happy. Too many people focus on artificial happiness – for example, how they appear on social media or fake friendships just to keep the friend number count high. No matter what you do, someone will have an opinion, so you might as well do something that puts a smile on your face. Even better, if it leads to being the reason someone else ends up smiling.

As this issue is all about conservation, we are asking everyone what conservation means to them. What does it mean to you?

Straight away, conservation takes me to the great outdoors. Conservation is actually something I have become very active with during lockdown, I am an Army Cadet Instructor and I introduced the John Muir Discovery Award to the cadets. This found the teenagers going out adventuring in their local area, discovering it and finding different ways to conserve it. They were given tasks that got them researching various things about the outdoors that otherwise wouldn’t be considered by them – these would then follow with a practical aspect. I found this gave these teenagers a better appreciation for what can impact positively and negatively to the great outdoors. I am an outdoor enthusiast with all my various hobbies and jobs and I encourage discussion and actions by all I work with to ensure the outdoors is treated the way it should be.

Where can our readers find you?

I can be found on the following: Instagram, Facebook, Etsy and TikTok: @Derven_Designs

Interview by Grace Balfour-Harle