Images October 2019 Digital Edition

IS DECORATOR PROFILE www.images-magazine.com 38 images OCTOBER 2019 Gemma Bennett explains how she went from hand sewing designs at her kitchen table to founding and growing custom-made childrenswear specialist Rocket & Rose I t all started with an Instagram post. Unable to find Christmas outfits for her tiny newborn twins, Gemma Bennett decided to sew her own and posted the result online. Eight years later, she heads rapidly growing business Rocket & Rose, specialising in custom-made clothes for children – and their parents too. The turning point for Gemma came in 2011, after she gave birth to twins Daisy and Ruby. She and husband Dan had been trying for children for a while and, when the time came for Gemma to return to her job as a marketing and events manager at a Brighton venue, she didn’t want to leave her children. “I went into ‘mama bear’ mode. I didn’t want anyone else to look after them. I loved my job but the hours were long and, with Dan working, I couldn’t see how I could do it without shipping the girls off.” The answer lay in the twins’ Christmas tutus. Friends loved the hand-sewn items and wanted them for their own children. “I had an art and design background and went to London College of Fashion so I was determined to do something creative,” Gemma explains. Getting started It didn’t take long for Gemma’s business to take off. “It was literally just friends of friends and word of mouth. I was working every single hour I could while the girls were asleep.” To meet demand, she needed an embroidery machine — but the cost seemed prohibitive. Luckily, the owner of a Sussex embroiderer was so impressed with what Gemma was Rocket woman I had an art and design background and I was determined to do something creative doing that he sold her a Brother PR650 for £500 in 10 instalments. “The fact that somebody in business helped me to get started, I will never forget. It was amazing for me, and my family, as it catapulted us to the next stage. I worked my absolute behind off to pay this money every single month. We’ve still got the machine now. She’s still going strong.” Rocket & Rose now has six embroidery machines, all Brother PR series. “They are domestic hobby machines but they work for us.” It also has four printing stations, using Silhouette Cameo machines and a Graphtec vinyl cutter. Whether working with glitter, foil or plain varieties, all their garment films are sourced from Dae Ha UK. “We never order from anyone else. Childrenswear is washed day in, day out: the last thing you want is anything shrinking or something falling off. The glitter stays bright all the time. We test everything in a tumble dryer. We know the quality is good, both the print and the garments.” Gemma no longer works on the kitchen table, nor is she based in Sussex. With the business growing and their son Frankie arriving in 2014, Dan gave up his job in security to support Gemma at home and at work. The couple moved Rocket & Rose designs are gender neutral The business is now based in a converted building housing a workshop, sewing room and office