Over lockdown, we opened our virtual doors for some pay-what-you-can coaching sessions. We had the pleasure of meeting Bevan O’Daly through these and chat with her about her idea to launch an ethical fabric store and haberdashery in Glasgow. It was a great reminder to think about supply chains and not only where your products come from but the materials that make them. Let us introduce you to her…
Tell us about yourself and Bawn Textiles
I am from Dublin originally. I studied Fine Art as an undergraduate and moved to Glasgow in 2015 to do a masters in Textile Conservation. Bawn only became a thought last Summer when I was feeling very unfulfilled in my work. I had a good honest chat with myself and came to the conclusion that I was craving a more creative and busier working life, and an opportunity to really push myself outside my comfort zone. I had worked in a fabric shop in Dublin for three years prior to moving to Glasgow, and when I think back, it was my favourite job by far.
Subconsciously, I had always dreamt of opening my own shop, but I never thought it would ever materialise. Nowhere was doing what I had envisioned, which at first, I thought was a bad thing. If nobody is doing it then it wasn’t worth doing, when actually, it was this giant gapping hole in the market that nobody had run with yet. It felt like a now or never type of opportunity.
There are plenty of fabric shops around Glasgow, mostly interior and craft fabrics, with some fashion fabrics in one or two places, but I could never find any that I liked, nor could I find any that were in the least bit sustainable. And that’s how the seed was planted.
It took a while to come up with the name. I didn’t want any literal meaning or any sewing connotations. I wanted something that brought in my own Irish heritage, the environment, and a sense of calm. It started with the word Bán which is the Irish word for white, like a blank canvas. However, I thought the accent might cause some pronunciation and google search wobbles, so I anglicised the word to Bawn which means a meadow or a fortified closure around a castle.
What are your top 3 tips for launching a business in 2020?
Put all your wild and wonderful long-term ideas for your business down on paper and then put them away. Start by getting right down to the very core of your business and go through each step as logically as possible. I found Trello to be a brilliant tool to file all sorts of ideas to come back to when the time was right. I found I could park ideas knowing that I wouldn’t have to keep them spinning in my head, freeing up the mental energy to really focus on the task at hand.
Don’t think you have to do it all by yourself. For example, if branding and marketing isn’t your strong point get some help. I asked Submarine Studio to help me with the branding for Bawn - the logo, colour scheme and font. It was the best decision I made. They presented me with a vision for Bawn that I would not have come up with myself. Hiring them gave me the headspace to focus on my strong suits and the parts of the planning that required my personal input such as sourcing fabrics and building professional relationships.
Make friends with other entrepreneurs. There is so much cross over in the planning stages of any business. Sharing resources, bouncing ideas, and getting support from those who understand that crossing the smallest of things off your list feels like a little victory. Many heads make for less headaches.
What is the best piece of advice you’ve been given and who gave it to you?
Later on in my planning I reached out to Aileen, the owner of The Sew Studio in Fife. She turned out to be the reality check that I needed. I was so focused on opening a physical shop next year that the idea of starting off with a website never even crossed my mind. Her outside perspective was the ultimate definition of pointing out the obvious.
She helped me to realise that what I had been teasing on social media was me striving for a level of start-up perfection that was unattainable and was only going to annoy the people who were already demanding sustainable fabrics.
She gave me the ‘just do it’ talking to that I needed, so I got straight to work. I made the website, sourced the initial stock, and launched the website exactly one month later. Needless to say I haven’t looked back.
What’s your ambition for Bawn?
My ambition for Bawn is to provide a trusted resource for sustainable fabrics and haberdashery. While there is no end to the learning, I want Bawn to support the growing community of conscious consumers in gaining a deeper understanding of textiles, especially in the areas often pushed aside, such as the raw fibres and weave structures. In time, my aim is to be in a position to also work with small fashion brands and bridge the gap between prohibitive minimum orders from large wholesalers and mills and the growth of their businesses.
What song motivates you and why?
One song that I always find myself coming back to for a little pick me up is Van Morrison’s ‘Real Real Gone’. It’s one of those songs that I can’t sit still for and fills me energy and gratitude for the people around me. It tells me that it’s ok to feel a bit fed up, but don’t give up – to pick myself back up, think positive and keep going!