4 minute read
Focus on... Roshah Designs
Written with love
Robina Shah’s husband’s hand calligraphy was the inspiration for Roshah Designs, but a tragedy put her dreams on hold. Now, the company’s designs are in major retailers across the UK
Tell us a little about Roshah Designs and how it started.
Roshah is something I had been meaning to do for many years now but I never had the confidence or belief I could do it. My husband Najaf always encouraged me to just go for it but, as you may have heard many times, life happens and dreams are put aside. I eventually started to create designs of ethnic greeting cards in 2013 with the help of my husband who provided me with some amazing hand calligraphy to use for my Eid collection. Unfortunately, in 2014, Najaf was diagnosed with AML (acute myeloid leukemia) on Valentine’s Day, and everything was put on hold.
He lost his battle with the illness the same year - six months after being diagnosed - and I packed away his beautiful calligraphy along with my dream.
Then in 2019 I was made redundant from my 10-year career designing socks and, while trying to find some paperwork a file fell into my lap; it was full of all his calligraphy he had created along with one of his anniversary cards he had given me, and I took that as a sign to make a start. I wasn’t sure how to do this so started my research and knew I wanted to offer ethnic/cultural cards from the high street as there was a lack of choice available.
So I set off emailing retailers and got a response from The Card Factory, and by January 2020 I had my first collection of cards available online. Then in March 2020 when Covid hit, like many others I was in lockdown and getting depressed and wanted to get myself motivated. So I started creating unique mandala designs and sharing them on my Instagram. This was my way to help others to relax while in lockdown. There was a huge request for the personalised sheets, and I must have sent out hundreds of colouring pages that could be downloaded at home.
Then followed requests for colouring books, which gave a massive boost to my confidence. The greeting cards developed more and gift wrap was added too - and we then exhibited for the first time at PG Live in March 2022. It was a great experience and helped build my confidence to put the brand and products out further, and has given me opportunities to get my brand in magazines like this one and work with UK Greetings on introducing a range to be sold in Tesco this year, which was both amazing and surreal to see. ‘’There is definitely a huge demand for ethnic greeting cards and especially gift wrap and, following my research I found the demand is there, but the product variety is very low’’
Does Roshah have a particular style when it comes to design?
Not really. I have been a designer of a variety of products for over 25 years, so I have a varied style from ethnic mandala to cute characters and am always experimenting with new styles.
I design all my cards and gift wrap but am currently looking to introduce new talent in 2023 that brings in variety and creativity, so watch this space… Why should retailers choose to stock ethnic designs?
There is definitely a huge demand for ethnic greeting cards and especially gift wrap and following my research I found the demand is there, but the product variety is very low. I would like Roshah to fill that gap in all the major high street retailers by 2025. Tell us about who already stocks your designs and your pop-up shops.
in John Lewis at the Trafford Centre, Manchester, which was a great success and confirmed the demand from a variety of customers/communities. Our cards are available online at Card Factory, Moonpig, Wuzci, Thortful and very soon on Scribbler online. We also sell wholesale via Faire & Ankorstore as well as through independent local stores, and hope to expand the offering in 2023. Tell us about your new ranges?
We have a wonderful array of designs available for all occasions and I am working on some designs all the time. We are expanding our worded ranges that offer specific occasions for ethnic communities using cultural words such as Ammi (mum), Bhai (brother) Shaadi (wedding) etc. How many ranges do you offer?
We offer Mandalas, cats, cute animals, and wordings, and are constantly adding to this. The bright mandala patterns have been a favourite, along with the cats range. Do you have any eco-friendly credentials you would like to mention?
Yes, all our products are manufactured in the UK and FSC accredited and recyclable. Anything else you’d like to add?
It would be great to get more stockists of our cards and gift wrap and I would love to hear from anyone wanting to do so. We are also updating our website and will be relaunching in the new year. In the meantime please check out all our links on https://linktr.ee/roshah02
