My Story So Far

Lisa and I started the business in May 2007 after we both became unemployed.

I had been working for my parents packaging company until, unfortunately, it went bankrupt and Lisa was working at the Department of Work and Pensions but her contract had come to an end.

We started going to the job centre looking for work but after approx 6-8 months with no luck in finding a job, I decided I was going to start up in business myself.

At the time I was thinking about what business we were going to start, Lisa fell pregnant putting even more pressure on our finances (by this stage we were living off approx £45 per week. We were literally eating beans on toast every night and I thought this is no good - I have to do something now).

The idea came to me as I was sitting wondering what I knew about and had experience in.

Working in my parents business I’d gained some experience in packaging and I’d done a few orders for printed bags. I started to look into selling printed carrier bags and that is when we decided to start The Printed Bag Shop.

I started to research the market to make sure the idea I had would work and then turned it into reality when I spoke to a business advisor at the job centre who guided us through business start-up and put us in touch with The Prince’s Trust for funding.

The Prince’s Trust and Project North East both gave us a small loan and both myself and Lisa also sold personal belongings to fund the start-up of the business.

The business has certainly taken the direction we’d hoped for and more. But it has been very hard - I work on my own and because it’s been so busy I have to work all hours so I don’t see as much of Lisa or Ellie as I’d like to.

When we started the business in the corner of our living room we did not expect that 2 years later we would be one of the UK’s leading suppliers of printed bags turning over quarter of a million pound a year.

When we started the business we set the office up in our living room. It was ideal until Ellie was born and started making baby noises when I was on the phone to the likes of Coca Cola. We had to find a small office which was quite a large step. Our next big step is expanding the business and taking on staff which we are doing at the moment.

We are also now in the process of launching our own brand of environmentally friendly bags under the brand ‘abagforlife.co.uk’ and are also busy setting up another business which will supply plain packaging such as boxes, bubble wrap, tape and bags. This is going to be called “The Packaging Supermarket”.
I’ve also won 3 awards and been listed in the 2008 NatWest Enriched list

North Tyneside Small Business Awards 2008 - Young Entrepreneur Winner
North Tyneside Small Business Awards 2009 - Young Entrepreneur Winner
The Princes Trust Celebrate Success Awards 2008 - FSB Enterprise Award - Regional Winner
NatWest Enriched List 2008 - Ranked 6th out of 15.

We spent a lot of time planning the business and i learned a lot of what not to do from seeing my mam and dad’s business fail. I’m always willing to put myself on the line if I feel I can make a success out of something. From a young age I used to do carboot sales with my dad, helped my grandad in his shop and then went on to have my own market stall and removal business. This was all before I was 18. I then bought a banner and flag business that I later sold for a profit.