Pitching my brand to John Lewis at A/W Top Drawer 2024.

After the success of exhibiting at my first trade show, Top Drawer, earlier in the year I decided to go back and exhibit at the A/W show to compare the two and grow my wholesale audience. 

This time however, very excitingly, I was shortlisted amongst six other brands to pitch my brand to an audience of major buyers including John Lewis and Morleys to win a pop up in a John Lewis store. Nail biting stuff to say the least but the most incredible opportunity!

I prepared a powerpoint sharing my brands origin, triumphs, and of course the products I had on offer and on the Monday went upstairs to the stage to present. I was terrified, but meeting the five other brands and seeing how nervous we all were helped reassure me that we just had to make the most of it.

I was selected to go first which turned out to be a great thing as I didn't have as long to sit with my nerves. I got up on the stage, didn't quite think my outfit choice through but hey ho, and shared my brand story with Olympia. As soon as the nerves subsided I actually felt really empowered to have the opportunity to share my brand in this way. I felt incredibly proud of myself at what I'd managed to achieve with my brand from when I started doodling little sassy cats in my notebook to this very moment standing on stage as a successful business owner. Absolute pinch-me moment for sure. 

I then received questions and feedback from the John Lewis and Morley buyers about my product and where I saw the business going which was such an eye-opening experience. 

Long story short I didn't win the pop up, that went to the incredible sustainable plant pot brand POTR who royally knocked it out the park with both the product and the pitch. Very well deserved. But what a fab opportunity, definitely made shy 13 year old Hannah extremely proud. 

Another incredible moment of this years Top Drawer was the fact my new Christmas range 'Apres Ski' was selected for the trend section display which Top Drawer uses to inform buyers what to look out for as they decide what to stock their shops with. Top Drawer can be an extremely overwhelming show for buyers as there's product after product to decipher through so this section serves as a great starting point and is hugely beneficial to the brands selected too. Absolutely blown away by the support! Two of my cocktail cards and my ski-ing wrapping paper got displayed which has since resulted in many new stockists.

It was also so great seeing the matchboxes I designed for The Colour Emporium in the flesh on her absolutely gorgeous stand...

Overall it was a great show, I met lots more incredible brands both buyers and exhibitors and got some great new stockists and contacts.

I've decided to have a break from trade shows next year however, after the huge investments this year. Exhibiting at a trade show such as Top Drawer is certainly not cheap. I spent almost £3,000 in total for the A/W show from the stand, lighting, accommodation etc. So I've decided to experiment with new ideas in 2025 and continue to test what works and what doesn't to grow Freya Niamh Design. I'm sure I'll be back to Top Drawer at some point but I'd also like to explore some of the other shows.