Radio 2 – How Savvy Cinderella started in 2008!
Since my 3 minute slot on the Jeremy Vine Show, talking about my start up business, my life and business have changed beyond belief. I have been contacted by people from all over the country, with messages of support & good luck, as well as a genuine interest in what I am doing. PR companies have contacted me congratulating me on my amazing PR stunt , and offering to help me further – at a huge cost! My intention is to (hopefully) inspire people to look at different ways of looking at things, and not spend money on advertising. Word of mouth is my main source of advertising.
To put it all into context, I set up business in October 2008 and I launched my website at the beginning of January 2009. The idea is simple, to sell or hire wedding dresses, tiaras and Veils, to brides who want to cut costs, but not corners. I have bought dresses from brides who got married recently, and want to have the wardrobe space back that the dress takes up, and have a lovely selection from brand new dresses from a well known bridal house Romantica of Devon. We are not trying to be a traditional bridal store, we are just offering a service, that we feel is needed in these cost conscious, environmentally friendly times. It won’t be for everyone, but anyone is welcome to come and have a look.
On the morning of Friday 9th of January, 2009 I had had 4 hits on my website. I was on my way back from meeting the lovely people at Elizabeth Dickens Veils, when I heard on the car radio Jeremy Vine and Claire Young of ‘The Apprentice’ fame. They asked the question, “Do you have to be clinically insane to open up a new business in a recession?’ Perhaps not in those exact words, but that was the general gist. I arrived back at my workplace/home and sent an email in to the show, saying that I was just starting a new bridal business, and I thought it was a great time. I thought it would be fabulous if I could hear my comment read out on the radio, but gave it no further thought as I tried on one of the veils I had picked up that morning, and answered my phone. (it is important to me that I test all products that I stock, so wearing a veil whilst answering the phone isn’t as unusual as it sounds). It was a Radio 2 researcher from The Jeremy Vine Show, asking if I would like to discuss my comments further. I don’t think he actually said ‘live on the radio’ but before I knew it I was listening to Smokey Robinson down the phone line, and then suddenly I was ‘LIVE’ to the nation. At that precise moment, I caught sight of myself in the mirror, in my Jeans and Ugg Boots, with full length Cathedral Veil, and I tried to sound professional. After a very interesting conversation with Jeremy and Claire, I returned to normal life. I called my husband to tell him I was on the radio. When I ended the call 2 minutes later, I checked my voicemail, and was amazed to have 7 messages from people who had heard the Radio show. From then on, I have never looked back. The phone rang every few minutes until 8pm that night, all from people offering me their wedding dresses, or looking for wedding dresses to hire or buy, or just calling to say that I sounded a really nice lady! I checked the emails the next morning, and had hundreds of them, and not all selling me Viagra or offering me penis enlargement. By the end of the first weekend, I had gone from 4 hits, to 4000 on my website.
That was three weeks ago, and I haven’t stopped working since. There are some lovely brides out there, who want to have a fabulous wedding, and still be able to pay the mortgage afterwards. I am able to help them by hiring them a beautiful dress, Veil or Tiara, or helping them to find the dress of their dreams through alternative avenues with out it costing them a fortune. (Begging, borrowing but I draw the line at shoplifting).
I was convinced that I sounded a total idiot on the Radio, as to be perfectly honest, I did look one, so my husband went to the BBC i-Player so I could listen to it, and to prove to my children that it really did happen. I was amazed, they actually disguise your voice, obviously to protect your identity. I was just a bit disappointed that they had chosen the voice of a 12 year old girl, with a hint of cockney about her – really, what was all that about?
My new found fame, has not come without a few drawbacks, and for those friends of my Mother, I would like to clarify that I was speaking with Jeremy Vine, and was not on the Jeremy Kyle Show. As for my Mother-in-Law, her words of wisdom have kept my feet on the ground – “6000 hits on your website is one thing – but shouldn’t you be doing your ironing’
Sue 20th January 2009