Small Business Sunday - We're in!

Time to tell a story, a story of an invitation we couldn't turn down, a story of a Dragon and a story of a stepping stone to the future!

This story is of last Friday, when we headed over to Edgbaston Cricket Ground for the Small Business Sunday (#SBS) Event hosted by BBC Dragon, Theo Paphitis and Ryman Stationary!

Once upon a time, well last year on 31st July, Piddley Pix was chosen as one of Theo's Small Business Sunday Retweets on Twitter.  Each week the BBC Dragon picks 6 small businesses to tell his twitter followers about. This year on 30th March Theo invited all of his SBS Winners to an event to meet each other and of course him!

With Dean (DaddyNatal) + Damian (Creche on Location)

On arrival at the venue, we were showed into an impressive room overlooking the cricket pitch, and with the offer of a drink, it was the perfect start, a chance to say hello in person to people we had been chatting to for a while on twitter, meet new people and network!

We were able to finally say hello to Sarah from Silver Birch Crafts in real life, we spent time chatting to Dean from DaddyNatal and met the lovely Amanda (and her husband Damian) from Creche on Location - to name but a few!

So, what happened next, well we were all taken into 'An audience with.....' The event was introduced by Kyros Kyprianou, the Chief Executive of Ryman Stationary (sponsors of the event). What a lovely man, the passion for business and the want to support us small folk shone through!

Next up was the main man, he took to the stage and talked to us about business, Small Business Sunday and more. He was so down to earth, so easy to listen too, and he really knows his stuff, oh and he has been on Telly!!

It's amazing that something Theo started for fun on a Sunday evening has come to hundreds of people meeting together and a brand new website being launched!  Theo introduced Chris from Metalfrog Studios (the guys behind the website) who wowed us with the new site and what it can do.  There's a profile for each business, opportunities to link up with other winners and a showcase of some of the best UK Small Businesses for you to browse through (check it out!!)

Theo then took questions from the floor, people asked how to break into the UK market, what Theo thought of the high street and how does he pick his #SBS winners (nope I am not telling!). Theo then even asked questions to us!

We had a great day, ending with a drink and some more networking, we had chance to catch up with Neil and Jane from Kidz outdoors and Ellie from Baby Duck Shop and Theo then had a photo with each business, what a nice guy (he even managed to keep the smilie going until the end)! There was so much talent in one room, so what did we really get out of it, well, we learnt more about what we knew, gained a new motto '3 Ps - passion, planning and perseverance', a kick up the bum for our re-launch (coming VERY soon) and a chance to mix with some fantastic people!

As we left we met another Theo, he was slightly greener but just as lovely and definitely worth a mention, so meet Theo from Harrogate Motorhomes!

Small Business Sunday Event!

There will be a bigger post coming soon about the Small Business Sunday (SBS) event we attended, but we just wanted to share a little peak at a picture of us with the Lovely Theo Paphitis!

This is our official photo from the day, receiving our certificate to confirm we have been an SBS winner! Look out for a post about the day coming soon!

New product!

We have our first adult tshirts for sale!

Head over and get yours fast! The first ten purchases get a free keyring too! A bargain at £15.00 including shipping (to the UK)

Budgeting for Christmas: How to Prioritise Your Spending

The holiday season is a time for giving — and for most of us, this means that it’s a crucial time for setting budgetary priorities as well. If there’s a toy, video game or special item that your child wants, chances are that it’s probably going to be expensive. Make sure you can afford the absolute essentials — such as that cherished toy, or the beautiful jumper you want for your sister, or the long-desired, high tech tablet for your spouse — by saving money on other items. Buy gift-wrap, tape and ribbon at discount stores; likewise save on seasonal foods by clipping vouchers and looking at weekly sales updates.

The same holds true with decorations; resist the temptation to buy that brilliant-but-expensive mechanical Father Christmas or that utterly scrummy gourmet Christmas cake and put the money towards a special gift on someone’s list. By using this approach, you’ll be able to save money for the important things; your children and loved ones will get the gifts they really want, and you’ll have the supreme satisfaction of being able to afford to give them.

Stores generally continue to offer their best sale prices right up until the big day, because they need to get their inventory down before the New Year. Take advantage of these sale prices and shop around until you get the best deal. Likewise, if you’re shopping online with a certain retailer, do an Internet search to see if that retailer has any discount promotional codes; these codes often aren’t advertised on the retailer’s website, and sometimes they offer really substantial savings. Shopping on auction sites such as eBay is also a great way to find bargains, particularly on popular toys of the season. Quite often these toys are offered at a “buy it now” price, and even with shipping costs, you can save as much as half of what the toy would cost in a retail store.

If you’re out shopping, take a detour from the shopping centres and check out your local charity shops. While it might take some searching, these shops can yield everything from still-tagged, unworn designer clothing to new-in-the-box, unused toys. Likewise, consignment shops can sometimes be a good source for brand new clothing and accessories.

If you’ve got a talent for knitting or crocheting, then stock up on good quality yarn when it’s on sale and choose a few simple shawl or afghan patterns that you can make up quickly and economically with just a few skeins of yarn. It’s a lovely — and money saving — way to show someone that you cared enough to make something especially for them. Likewise, if cooking is your forte, bake up batches of Christmas cakes, festive biscuits, or anything else you’re good at, and fill holiday tins with these treats. At Christmastime, food is always appreciated, especially when it’s homemade — and you’ll be able to make these goodies at a fraction of the cost of buying them.

Gift baskets are also a welcome gift, whether filled with food, bath salts and soaps or linens and kitchenware. Shop sales and clearances to stock up on appealing and trendy items, then parcel them out into inexpensive-yet-attractive baskets — thrift stores and charity shops always have plenty of these — and cover the whole with clear or coloured cellophane topped off with a huge bow—and voila! You have an expensive-looking luxury gift basket at a budget price.

By using some of these tips — and coming up with a few of your own — you’re sure to be able to shave a bit off of your Christmas spending. This way, you’ll be able to better afford that expensive toy your child is longing for this year. And, if you save enough on the non-essentials, you might even be able to treat yourself to that scrummy gourmet Christmas cake after all.

This post was written as a guest blog post by mum’s mall - a specialist price comparison site for maternity products, toys, kids & baby clothes featuring over 50 online stores. Find mum’s mall on Facebook and Follow mum’s mall on Twitter.

Threadless T Shirt Design

We love supporting the creative folk and Artists and even more happy to do so when it is one of our artists!
Kev has submitted a design to Threadless and it is available to be voted on! Please take a look and tick the as a tee box, Click on the big 5 and of course leave a comment of support - Especially if you are a fan of Tin Tin!!

Check it out on Threadless!