2022 Winner - Blade & Rose
Company Name: Blade and Rose
Name: Amanda Peffer
Winning Product (s): Blade and Rose Peter Rabbit Collection
Can you tell me a bit about your business and the inspiration behind your products? Blade & Rose is the trend-setting British Childrenswear brand. Founded by mother of two, Amanda Peffer, the company now boasts Worldwide success with stockists in countries including Germany, France, Spain, Belgium, Italy, Netherlands, Greece, Japan, US, New Zealand to name a few.
While on her maternity leave with her 3 month old daughter, she realised she was constantly pulling her daughter's dress down to hide her nappy. This gave Amanda the initial idea for a solution which embraces the adorable nappy bottom. On conducting some research, Amanda soon learnt this was a gap in the market and there wasn’t anything quite right out there, this is when she decided to design a fun range of leggings around this concept.
Quality and value was at the forefront of the developmental process when designing the leggings. It was important that the fabric be durable, functional, easy to care for and most importantly that it would be kind to children’s soft skin. The initial range sold out in no time, making the quirky leggings with characters and prints on the bum and an elastic waistband Blade & Rose’s signature iconic design.
Since the brand’s birth, the Blade & Rose product range has expanded, now offering a full collection of childrenswear starting from 0-6 months to 4+ years. The full Blade & Rose collection includes tops, t-shirts, shorts, hoodies, raincoats, swimwear, shoes and accessories. All garments and accessories are available in prints which match with other items, for an adorable coordinated look which can be continuously added to. Some Blade & Rose characters include Highland Cow, Buzzy Bee, Fox and now Peter Rabbit. All Blade & Rose fabrics are certified Standard 100 by Oeko-Tex, which ensures materials are safe for babies and Children and do not contain any harmful substances.
In what ways has winning Gift of the Year affected your business? As the gift of the year is such a prestigious award, it has been great for business, with both business-to-business customers and direct-to-consumer.
The Peter Rabbit collection that we won the Branded Gift of the Year award 2022 created a real buzz at the latest's trade shows and a lot of our stockists commented that it had helped with sales due to the accolade. Likewise, it attracted some new stockists to place an order with us, which was amazing.
It was also great recognition for the team here at Blade and Rose, as we were up against a lot of fantastic branded products, so to come back and say we had won was a fantastic feeling.
Likewise, we had a fantastic reaction on our social media pages when we announced we had won. This helped with sales, but also gave brand new customers visibility to our range and an assurance that if they were purchasing from us that we are a reputable brand.
Would you recommend a business to enter the GOTY awards and why? Yes, we would 100% recommend any business to enter the GOTY awards.
The whole experience was great. The awards night was fantastic and a great opportunity to network. From a business perspective, to say you have been shortlisted, or are a finalist is a real honour and is another indicator to potential customers that you are a legitimate business and it helps you stand out above your competitors.
Would you be able to provide us with a brief testimonial about the awards and why it's important for businesses to enter? We would highly recommend anyone entering the GOTY awards. It is a real honour to be recognised by such a prestigious award and it has been fantastic for sales. You also get to meet a lot of brilliant companies, and the networking opportunities are brilliant. The awards night itself was nothing short of spectacular.
To find out more about Blade and Rose you can visit their website here - https://bladeandrose.co.uk/
