Evesham business recognised by Dragons' Den investor

Louise Hancox received a huge boost to her social media following on Monday, October 4, when entrepreneur Theo Paphitis retweeted her submission to ‘Small Business Sunday’ (SBS).

Having started in 2010, each week the Dragon selects six winners for whom he ‘retweets’ their submission to his near half a million followers.

Ms Hancox was left speechless when she found out her entry was selected.

She said: “I had no idea if my entry would be successful but knowing that Theo Paphitis is looking for something eye-catching, I decided to tweet a short video about my work. It clearly did the trick!

“When my phone lit up, I couldn’t quite believe that Theo Paphitis was retweeting my entry as one of his six winners!

“The next few days were very hectic as my Twitter following increased and I was inundated with notifications of congratulations.

“It’s amazing to look back over the last two years and to see how much I have learned whilst trying to grow my business. It makes me smile to think that two years ago I didn’t even have a Twitter account!”

Louise Hancox Textile Artist was launched in October 2019 and she conducts all her work from her home studio at the Malt House in Church Lench.

Louise Hancox conducts all her business from her home studio in Evesham

She added: “It is great to have support from Theo because it’s been tough trying to raise my profile and Theo has recognised my hard work and helped spread the word about what I do to his following.

“It’s always difficult starting out as a new business and trying to get yourself seen can be really challenging.

“When the pandemic took hold in the Spring of 2020, I was able to sustain my business through my shop, sending my work across all across the country, and even as far afield as the United States, as everyone took to shopping online.”

All winners are given an online profile on the SBS website and invited to an annual networking event where they are presented with a certificate.

Mr Paphitis, chairman of Ryman Stationery, Robert Dyas and Boux Avenue, said: “We are thrilled to welcome new #SBS members every week and highlight just how important it is to support our small businesses here in the UK.

“My vision is that everyone who has ever won an #SBS re-tweet from me becomes part of a friendly club; like-minded individuals who can share successes and learnings.

“The website will also give a valuable profile to the winners chosen and I wish Louise Hancox Textile Artist every success.”