how I started a small stationary business
the challenges, lessons, & what it actually takes: my journey with my planner for women: Plannher.
the vision
Imagine…
It is late July 2015.
Almost 10 years ago!
I am in Ubud, Bali, unpacking my bags. Out come 6 (6!) notebooks. Each one for a particular area of my life.
There has to be a better way.
That moment inspired me to come up with a revolutionary system in a Filofax that changed my life. I tell this story in a recent interview with the wonderful Amy Lea from the Unreasonable podcast. Listen to it here.
That article received thousands of views and countless emails asking if I could recreate my system and make it available. I liked the idea, but I had no idea how to start. I’d always had an online, non-physical, location-independent business.
How and where do you even begin with creating a physical product?
Over the next few years my planning, manifesting and journaling method evolved but I kept using the same old Filofax and refilling the pages every 6 months until it started to look scruffy and crack at the edges.
Over those same years, I would lose myself in a rabbit hole of research on developing my method into a physical product.
I had a vision: the product had to be high quality, ethically made and from sustainable materials. Finding a production company that met my standards proved to be very difficult.
my method
• daily non-negotiable rituals
• working with the energy of the days of the week
• monthly new moon manifestation and full moon reflections
• money love + manifestation tools (to transform lack mindsets for bigger bank balances)
• ‘love’ to-do lists — because when we appreciate what we get to do it changes everything
• journaling as a form of transforming the present rather than documenting the past
• soft planning practices for successful future projections
• plus: special extras incl. — vision maps, how to build a seasonal capsule wardrobe, inspirational poetry that seems to land at just the right time
my story • a timeline
2015 - a problem to solve
too many notebooks, not enough space
2016 - the original concept
cue: a pretty peach planner that revolutionised my life
2017 to 2018 - trial and error
I spent months researching.
every search for a printing company led me to China.
their approach did not match my production vision and values
I gave up… for now
2019 - the vision reignited
I sent 100’s of emails to small print houses across Europe
finally, I heard back from one who told me he could do what I wanted
I mapped out the planner, hired a designer and produced the first prototype
it was sent to the family-run print house in Bulgaria
2020 - dreams do become things
5 years from its original conception
1 year after that dream was put into motion
on an unusually hot June day a big delivery truck pulled up outside my flat
a palette of brown boxes: the first 500 Plannhers arrived earthside
I spent the next 6 months (in the middle of all the global lockdowns!) going to the post office every day sending Plannhers to every corner of the world with so much love and gratitude. There’s nothing like the feeling of knowing that something you have made is going to live, love and support another soul in another corner of the universe.
2021 to 2022 - the take-off
I sold out & ordered more
it was time to outsource shipping
they were sent to a fulfilment warehouse outside of London
2023 - the crash
it was all a dream
until I ordered more
& had Brexit happened
& the import costs became extortionate
& the shipping costs higher than the production of Plannher
so I decided that this would be the final print run (for now)
2024 - the redirection
in August, the fulfilment warehouse confirmed the end of stock
& so I closed the shop, with dreams of redesigning
back to my original idea of a bound filofax
one day in the future
until, last week
when I received an email
apparently, it was all a mistake
& there were still a few 100 Plannhers left
hidden on some unchecked shelves
now
the final Plannhers
are on sale
for the very last time
& because we have to empty the warehouse by the end of December
I am selling them at a special price
last chance • invest in my dream
two colours:
🥛 cream, or
🍯 honey
U.K.
Within the U.K. (because that’s where my fulfilment warehouse is)
they are £50 each, shipping included ✨
If you want to buy two I’ll give you the third one free. DM me or press reply to this email.
International
Outside of the U.K. shipping varies between £25 and £50 per order
so I am running a special: if you order 3 I’ll drop the shipping costs
= £150 for 3 instead of £300
~ Let me know if this speaks to you
Wholesale
For anyone interested in wholesale orders of 30 or more, I am selling them at the cost of packing, handling and shipping.
get in touch if this is for you.
&
pls: share this with everyone you know!!!
& help me wrap up this dream (for now)
the lessons • what I wish I knew
here is a list of things I wish I had known in advance. each would’ve saved me tears, time, and energy.
learn how to rest & take it seriously
learn to hear your inner truth and ALWAYS listen
learn to self-regulate & never judge emotions. acknowledge that what you are doing is inherently terrifying to your nervous system.
allow yourself to lean on others; collab, co-create, outsource, get support early
realise the parts you hide might be the parts that hold the gold
realise you are NOT your business, you’re a human being. act accordingly
always remain a student. stay humble; you’re never done learning
find your why - what hurts you most in the world? what has hurt you? let it fuel you when you want to give up
have clear systems & routines; use productivity tools so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel each time
KNOW YOUR NUMBERS - get clear & empowered in your finances. don’t give that power away.
this is all from me today.
let me know if you’d like a little piece of my heart and dreams in the form of a Plannher, in your life.
