Standing out from the flock

On Monday evening, I had the pleasure of listening to the fascinating story of a uniquely Cumbrian business, as told by one of it’s founders.

Way back in time (2007, in fact), I was working at Touchstone Interiors, in Skelwith Bridge. Interesting new products were selected regularly, and one day I noticed a particularly striking style take up residence on a shelf in the store.

There were only two items on display; a keyfob and a mug, in a selection of bright colours, all with a very simple, but striking, graphic-designed Herdwick sheep’s face on them. I thought they were great, and my niece got one for Christmas.

I was unaware at the time, but Herdy, the company behind the unique design, had just started up.

During the course of an enjoyable 90 minutes at Kendal College, Spencer Hannah explained how he and wife Diane have developed their company from a potentially disastrous start at the Westmorland County Show (where the Foot and Mouth Crisis left them attempting to launch their three-product range amongst rows of empty sheep pens) to having three retail outlets in the Lakes and Yorkshire Dales, and their ever-expanding range stocked by more than 400 retailers in the UK.

All of their products have a single intention – to make you smile. And clearly it works, as a huge and devoted following has grown around the cute and loveable brand. A quick look at their Twitter or Facebook accounts shows a remarkable interaction between fans and the company, with pictures of homemade Herdy cakes, products in use in far flung places, and stories of the pleasure the simple design gives to thousands of people.

Remarkably, so effective is this following and the word-of-mouth spread of Herdy, that the company doesn’t spend any money on marketing, yet has still doubled in size year on year. Allowing fans to have fun and be creative with the brand doubtlessly helps this greatly too, engendering a strong sense of community amongst their devotees, as opposed to the more common “brand police” approach of so many organisations, where attempting to play with the style is frowned-upon from the dark recesses of a legal team’s office.

Establishing a clear brand strategy and personality from the start, they have wisely embraced social media, and seen loyal followers flock to become part of the community and help spread the word.

Giving something back is an integral part of their ethos also, and they are proud to support sustainable rural community and fell farming projects through the Herdy Fund.

With a continuing desire to become the most loveable brand, and a firm intention to stay in the Lake District, they’ve come a long way from their first tentative attempts with some key fobs, t-shirts and mugs, and now have a range that includes everything from baby clothing, craft kits and umbrellas, to flat caps, iPhone cases and oven gloves.

So, it seems you can be fun, responsible, give something back and still become successful. Who kn-ewe?

This post first appeared as my "Thank grumpy it's Friday" column, in the North West Evening Mail, on the 2nd of October 2015. You can view the version published by the paper on their website here 

Hasn't happened for a while, but a fair bit went missing by the time it hit the news stands (does it hit some stands? No idea.) - the reference to the fact that Herdy don't spend anything on marketing vanished, along with the whole brand police part.

Just to prove that they know their social media onions, when I tweeted Herdy to say I enjoyed the talk, they retweeted and replied rapidly, and did likewise when I tweeted a link to the column online on Saturday.

I genuinely did enjoy the talk, although the whole big-room-full-of-people-I-don't-know business, and the clear encouragement to network and chat beforehand, left me feeling somewhat out of my depth. Social situations?! Why do you think I hide behind a computer and type stuff..?

As it was straight after work, I sat in the car in the car park before going in and ate a tiny pack of 2 savoury biscuits, an even smaller caramel-type biscuit you get given with coffee in posh places and a Double Decker. When I got in, there was a buffet, which meant I could have eaten something decent instead. Ah well - gotta look after my figure.

(CD A-Z: Still on B for Blondie, and the '99 Atomic/Atomix collection. Call Me, yeah?)