For Wiltshire mum, Ruby Blaken, it was the birth of her third child which inspired her to join the growing numbers of independent business mums by starting Second Snuggle, a company to provide quality pre-loved children’s and maternity clothing and goods to families across the region.
“When I had my first child, it was (and still is!) so easy to buy lots of beautiful new clothes,” recalls Ruby. “Once I had my second, I was in the same position of lots of friends who had so many clothes passed to us from older children. This was amazing, it was lovely to see clothes being reused, it saved us money and helped friends clear out clothes too.
“We would then pass these clothes on again to the next younger one. This is where the idea for Second Snuggles originated and I started to think more about pre-loved. Fast forward to being pregnant with my third, (and being in lockdown!) I had more time to research and decide where I wanted to go with it.”
Ruby’s plan was to create an online shop for all children’s and maternity clothes, as well as other related items, while also creating a marketplace for quality, beautiful, outgrown items that mums and dads couldn’t bare to see thrown out, with the added bonus on getting some money back at the same time too.
The result is Second Snuggle, a business that sells clothes for other families, making it easy for them to clear out items they are no longer using. Participating families just need to package the clothes up and send or drop them off with Ruby, and she takes care of the rest.
“We very quickly moved to getting a website, starting with stripped background photos and moving on to the lovely backdrop we have now. It’s very much been a learning process and I am enjoying it all! Some weeks just don’t go to plan as I work around the children but they are great at helping with packing and post office runs. I couldn’t do this without the support of my husband, family and friends. I am very passionate about it and really enjoy doing the work.
“We either buy your items or can list items on the website for you and we take a commission once they are sold,” said Ruby. “We are very much about sustainability, finding new homes for clothes and that is why you will find a whole range of items on our website. We take multiple photos of items so you can see fully what you are buying and make sure that any defects, if any, are described fully. We even get lots in that are new with tags and have taken ex-stock bundles in too.’
“I admit that I love shopping, but I am striving to make sure my shopping habits are not detrimental to the world. Slow fashion is becoming much easier now with lots of websites available, and kids, adults and vintage clothing all catered for. I am trying to spend this year just shopping pre-loved. I do definitely find this easier for the kids than for me but I am trying!”
And with Second Snuggle, Ruby to helping more and more families to do the same thing too.
For more information, go to www.secondsnuggle.co.uk and come follow them on Facebook and Instagram too.