“Crafters like gardening and gardeners like crafting”: West Design’s Jo Bray on why an RHS collaboration made sense

Jo, thanks for making time. To kick off, could you give us a potted history and overview of West Design? 
Given that West Design goes back to 1888, there is a good deal of history! The company has evolved from its roots in technical and drawing office products through to art materials, craft and stationery. It operates out of three locations: Folkestone houses the head office and distribution, Verwood is the creative hub and Plymouth is where we manufacture paper, labels and portfolios. It’s a 100% family-owned-and-run business spread along the South Coast.

And where would West Design’s products be found? 
West Design’s products can be found in many art and craft stores in the UK – and are also exported around the world. In addition, through its manufacturing capacity, we supply own-label lines for many high street stores. There are certain stores where we supply a significant amount of own-brand products across many different categories that no one else would be aware of!

Interesting! Now, you recently announced a licensing deal with the RHS. Why did you decide to go down the licensing route? What appealed about the RHS brand?

There is only a short step from own-label manufacturing to licensing. We have the expertise in design, sourcing and production for a wide range of products and our previous experience with the toy industry demonstrated the power of brand licenses.

With this in mind, we looked for a nationwide brand which would fit with both our product and consumer base. We have had great success expanding our craft offering and we see in the RHS a similar customer demographic and the opportunities this provides for our creative department. It felt like an obvious fit… Crafters like gardening and gardeners like crafting.  As a business, we also really liked the brand and knew that the RHS would have some great assets to work with.

On that, can you talk us through the range?  
We started off trying to keep the range as tight as possible for our first launch, but when we saw the assets available, we got a bit carried away!

Our first launch will include 23 adult products and 10 children’s products. We have tried to include art and craft products to cover as many genres as possible. The style guide and assets lent themselves really well to the different products. For our autumn/winter launch, we are again trying to diversify to include seasonal products.

From a design perspective, how did you develop the range?
We had a rough idea of what products we were looking to focus on before we had even signed the contract! The RHS has some beautiful botanical artwork that lends itself perfectly to the cover of a sketchbook or scrapbook, or as the illustration for an embroidery item or cross stitch.

During one of our initial meetings, we were presented with the RHS style guides. These extraordinary assets set our creative minds racing. The guides highlighted specific trends, genres or category-appropriate illustrations, all of which gave us ideas and themes.

And that’s not all! To make our lives easier – and save time – the artwork in the guides were offered in cut-out form and with ready-to-use patterns. We were, however – and refreshingly – encouraged to use our imagination and not feel limited as to how the images could be used.

That’s good to hear. What lessons have you learnt so far about how you make the most of a licensing opportunity? 
It’s essential to have a close working relationship and understanding of the aims of both parties and what they are looking for from the partnership. As a family-run business, we put a great emphasis on ensuring our name is linked to leading brands – through our distributed agreements – and now in licensing.

It’s also essential that there is a synergy between West Designs and the licensor.  Our customer profile must be attractive to the licensor – who is looking for both financial reward and increased brand awareness. An obvious area to develop is with the garden centres, which often devote much space to craft and gifts during the quieter winter months. The RHS brand obviously adds value for the customers in these stores. It’s a recognisable and trusted brand.

Crafting seems more popular than ever. Is that right?  
Well, as with gardening, craft provides people with an opportunity to take time out from the stresses of everyday life. This has been a feature throughout time. The one thing that changes is the rise and fall – and often rise again – of different aspects of craft. However, there is an underlying demand to be ‘creative’ and demonstrate one’s individuality.  Covid gave many people – from children being home schooled to furloughed adults – the opportunity to reconnect with craft activities. That interest has not diminished.

It appears to be quite a competitive area. How do you stand out in the category? 
We are extremely fortunate to have our own in-house design team who have years of experience working within the craft industry. As mentioned before, craft is always evolving and it’s essential that we are at the forefront of these changes. The link with the RHS gives us the opportunity to demonstrate market leadership with an exciting brand.

Jo, this has been great. I have one last question! If you were encouraging a non-crafter to try crafting, is there a project you would recommend to get them started?
We have tried to cover many different areas of art and craft within our first launch, and separately cater for different abilities. Our Paint by Numbers kits for instance, enable you to create the most beautiful pieces without needing to be able to draw.

Sold! Thanks again! 

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