Developments at Swizzle and Friends

2020 has given us all plenty to think about but sustainability is still the focus

Well, what a year it has been!
It is quite some time since we last posted a blog about all that we have been doing, so let’s get everyone up to date.
So, back in March we joined the rest of the nation in lockdown, which for us meant my husband taking over the desk space on a daily basis as he worked from home.
Child 1 stopped travelling to college and was left to her own devices to get her studies done. Fortunately, she was in a year that was unaffected by exam results so no extra pressures there, but it was challenging enough. She did well and is now back in the college environment in her last year of compulsory education.
Child 2 thoroughly enjoyed working under lockdown conditions. No need to get up early to catch the school bus, she just had to roll out of bed in time to get dressed, have breakfast and be ready for for her virtual lessons to begin - which all took place on the sofa, via the family laptop.

A bit of a dip in trade

And what of Swizzle and friends? Well, as with many other businesses, orders dropped dramatically but they started to rally a little as the year went on.
But what the lockdown did do was give us a chance to reassess what direction the business needed to go in, for the new normal. With not so many people going to work, not so many beeswax wraps are needed, although they are still available.
The resin mixture blocks have probably been our best sellers over the recent months, so people are still keen on making their own wraps.

One thing we did during lockdown was to make some wash bags for NHS staff. We saw an appeal for them, and as we had the material, we made and sent a batch, so NHS staff could just put their uniforms in them at the end of a shift for washing, so they didn't have to touch them again until they were clean. We also offered to do the same for other people, who just had to pay the wholesale cost of the material. As we had so much support, we ended up sending nearly 200 bags.

Plenty to choose from

Of course, we still have our full range of other products to help people reduce their use of single-use plastics.
These include insulated water bottles, reusable coffee cups to get filled at the takeaways, washing up brushes, product bags, toothbrushes, homemade soap, exfoliating sponges, popcorn bags, lunch boxes, vegan leather snack bags and there are some other vegan options as well. And for the current climate, we even have a range of masks.

New lines in development

But we have also been thinking about our future direction and that is Swizzle Socks. They are still in the development stage but we will be making them more available soon.
The idea came when we realised how little is paid for fleeces and how good wool is at providing comfort for your feet. So in recent times, we have been working to create some unique designs - so much so, that no two pairs of sock are the same. Well, if we are honest, no two socks are the same as we aim to offer people the chance to embrace their uniqueness.

We'll be writing more about this new line in future blogs, so for now, that is where we are. Many of our existing lines are still available but we are looking to offer other sustainable products as time goes on.