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The business name. Now fully decided.
The name came to me from research looking into words associated with myself. The word Aquila comes from my early childhood. Aquila was the name of my parents Venture scout unit which they both ran, from birth up to childhood (being the only child of my parents at the time) I would travel along to weekly meetings and onto weekend camps with them. Apparntly I would even go on hikes with them, packed into a rucksack.
It is a name which has always has relevance to myself and it will give the gallery a personal touch.
Finding a name for the business
Initally I wanted to name my gallery under my photography brand name ‘Lil Gem Photography’. There are problems which means I can’t really name my gallery/coffee shop under this name.
Lil Gem is personal to myself as I am shorter than average and since my early teens it has always been something which is always played on and been noticed. The other thing is many people once they’ve got to know me for a while tend to call me Gem instead of Gemma. This happens in many aspects of my life including work.
I have began to think about other names for my gallery and I began with looking into the meaning of my name. I found out that Gemma is italian for gem and Gemma as a name usually describes the person as creative and expressive. They enjoy becoming involved in many different activities. As the name Gemma means ‘creative’ I looked into the translation of creative in Italian which is Creativo. I do quite like this as a name but I am not sure if people would always bear it in mind when looking for galleries. I found out that creative in Latin is Aliquam which I don’t like to pronounce.
I then began thinking about Aquila which stands for eagle. It is what my parents Venture scout unit was named whilst I was very young. It is something which has been associated to me especially during the first couple of years of growing up.
Currently I am considering alot about Aquila as a name as it has a real personal touch to me.
Chart of my website visits over the past year on http://www.lilgemphoto.co.uk
Online Survey
I have created a survey which has been sent to a few people I know in the Wotton-Under-Edge area to be completed. I am hoping I will be able to gain a small insight into what the local people think about the businesses within the area.
Wotton-Under-Edge Community Website
Information for the community of Wotton-Under-Edge. The website informs people of upcoming events in the area (including the local auction and local walks)
Market Research
Mungos (situated on Long Street) is a little home décor, gift and jewellery shop. They sell a mixture of country, simple and contemporary items, targeting a wide range of different types of customers and will only sell items, which are made in the United Kingdom or ethically produced.
I spoke to the lady running the shop on a Wednesday morning and asked about how busy the area is. I learnt that parking around the area does restrict the amount of customers that could potentially come into the area and shop within her business. There is no particular pattern in how trading is busier or quieter, it is very ‘hit and miss’. The recession has had a major impact on the area for business.
Personally I have never had a real problem with parking within the area to walk to the high street, this is something, which I have concluded that this could be something, which the customers who have visited the business have mentioned.
Fusion gallery is satiated mainly in the centre of Long Street to which they sell fine art, framing, ceramics and textiles. I gained a lot of information from the owner of the gallery. Fusion gallery began 8 years ago in the area and in the first couple of years had many private shows but over the years this has declined. The business adapts to how the climate is running meaning that this year Fusion have had to purchase less quantity of products in order to save money. They are expecting a 20% downfall already and are prepared for it.
Fusion gallery tend to find that the business picks up more customers when there is a local auction and when the local walking club have a walk around the surrounding Cotswolds, particularly from American people visiting the area.
I have learnt from a younger local person within the surrounding area of Wotton-Under-Edge that McQuiggs, a café within the centre of Long Street has a customer reputation that is declining with the younger generation, as the owner of the café seems to act in a rude, unprofessional manner to them. I believe that this should not happen within any type of business as every customer should be treated the same regardless of there age or personality. Meaning that there is a opportunity for people to build a business aimed at this particular age group.
Pricing printing and framing
I have been using the pricing list from Photographique to get an idea of how much printing and framing would potentially cost
Financial Information Research
I have been looking into Barclays and what they offer for start up businesses. I did initaly begin looking at Lloyds TSB and what they had to offer but in comparison to Barclays I couldn’t make much sense of it.
http://www.barclays.co.uk/BusinessBanking/P1242557952664
Barclays Business offer clinics for start up businesses.
Let’s talk idea’s business seminars - helps determine if a business is viable provides advice and networking opportunities.
Loans and grants are available. (Loans, commercial mortgage)
Prince’s trust loan - available for 18-30 year olds. It offers £500 - £5,000 over one or three years. Free business banking account.
Commercial mortgage - Any amount over £25,000 available. The repayment period is 1 to 25 years, fixed rate term of 1 to 10 years. Borrow up to 80% of the lower business property valuation or purchase price.
