Member Article

Female entrepreneur picks up two major awards

Durham-born Sara Davies, 29, founder of manufacturing company Crafter’s Companion, has scooped a Shell Women of the Future Award for Entrepreneur of the Year at the annual ceremony held in London.

Sara fought off stiff competition from co-founder of augmented reality business Blippar and owner of Snap Fashion amongst other high-profile businesses. This is the second esteemed award win for Sara; earlier this week took home an international Stevie® Award for Women in Business from a glamorous event held in New York City.

Now in their eighth year, and supported by patron Cherie Blair, The Women of the Future Awards, in association with Shell, recognise the inspirational stars of tomorrow across diverse sectors and are intended to inspire the next generation of female leaders.

Crafter’s Companion was founded in 2005 by Sara and its products became an instant hit with crafting enthusiasts worldwide. Sara is now a global star in the craft sector, regularly featuring on TV channels Ideal World and Create & Craft demonstrating the range of tools the company now manufacturers.

Judges at the Women of the Future Awards said: “Sara has built an extremely solid and sustainable business in Crafter’s Companion. It has huge international potential yet is rooted in the UK with British manufacturing at its heart.

“Sara is inspirational and she is driven by real people - people that take crafting incredibly seriously and will do for many years. She is personally a champion of her region and a true entrepreneur.”

On winning the awards, the mum-to-be said: “I’m genuinely shell-shocked. I can’t believe in the space of a week I have won a Stevie and a Shell award, both are world recognised and there was fiercely tough competition so I feel very privileged. They will definitely take pride of place in the awards cabinet in the office.

“I couldn’t have built Crafter’s Companion into the business it is today if it wasn’t for my family’s support and of course my fantastic team, so these awards are recognition for all of us. I’m so proud of what we have achieved over the past eight years and I’m really excited about the future of the company.”

As well as running Crafter’s Companion, Sara is the current board chair at the Craft Hobby Association UK, an angel investor with Gabriel Investors and acts as a business mentor through Entrepreneurs’ Forum and UKTI.

Along with its site in County Durham, the company also now has sites in the US and mainland Europe. The business has had a stellar year, increasing its staff count to around 60 with the addition of a sales team based in Holland to cater for the Benelux region.

It has also seen its flagship product ‘The Ultimate’ being sold in stores across North America through the largest independent craft retailer. Earlier in 2013, an investment of £100,000 was made to improve Crafter’s Companion’s packing and distribution facility in Coundon to enable its expansion plans over the next five years after.

Crafter’s Companion’s products are sold online, through TV shopping channels and through retail outlets. Aside from crafting tools, the company also distributes an array of third party brands and develops products with licensing partners such as The Snowman.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Jodie Balmer .