Classic, contemporary Harris Tweed clothing, accessories and gifts handmade in Scotland.

All by Myself : A Feature article in eQlibrium, the definitive Publication for Women in Business

WHILE "ROOBEDO" NOW an established brand in its fourth year the company is still run by Ruth Morris - and her alone. After completing a four-year sandwich course in clothing studies at the Scottish College of" Textiles in the Borders. Ruth worked as a pattern cutter at Lindsay Allan Childrens wear, below moving on to Edinburgh and "Wacky Enterprises". It was at this independent female clothing outlet that Ruth decided to start making and selling her own clothes.

"'I have always made clothes for myself and my friends," she recalls, "and selling through Wacky allowed me to test the market without taking the risk of going it alone." By the start of 2000. Ruth became convinced there was definitely a demand for her particular style of women's clothing and "Roobedo" was born. Initially, a mail order company run out of Leith, "Roobedo" moved to retail premises in Edinburgh's East Fountainbridge in August 2001. In the next phase of her company's development Ruth hopes to develop her range by supplying "Concrete Wardrobe", the textile division of Edinburgh's "Concrete Butterfly".

"If l want to increase me sales, I will have to increase my supply," she accepts. "At the moment I am missing out on impulse purchases. I tend to only have a small supply of available stock- a sample rail that consumers call browse through. Often they can only try on something that isn't quite the right sire and they have to be very keen on a particular item if they are willing to wait three weeks fair it."

Another unavoidable pressure of being a sole trader is that a great deal of time is taken up with the administration of the business. This is proving a particular problem for Ruth who is finding that as her business success grows, she is forced to spend an increasing amount of time in the shop or dealing with monetary matters - and less time designing".

"Although time management is a problem for me" she agrees, "I am happy with the way the business is running and that I have been able to retain control over every aspect from design through to production."

It is a testament to the quality of her designs that Ruth has been able to develop the "Roobedo" label. By keeping her overheads low and wastage to a minimum. "Roobedo" has gradually built a healthy client base while keeping its head above water.

Ruth is grateful for the support she has received front the Scottish Executive, through Scottish Textiles, but says it was not easy to convince them she was a worthy candidate in the beginning.

"When I first approached Scottish Textiles, they were wary of me," she says. "I think they thought I was too young and inexperienced to launch my own label. But, once they saw that I was going to stick around they became very supportive." She is keen that the faith shown in her now is repaid. "By the time I come to retire" she muses, "I want to be able to do it safe in the knowledge that I have given something back to the Scottish textile industry."

DESIGNS ON SUCCESS
"Life as a sole trader can be a bit lonely at times," concedes Ruth. "So, myself and a group of friends set up 'design-ED', a collective of Edinburgh-based designers and specialist manufacturers. The group was conceived as a way of boosting each others sales by association "While the returns have not beer spectacular," she says, "the ancillary benefits of working with a motivated group of like-minded people have been excellent." The collective talents of the design-ED group are now starting to receive some international recognition. After a successful exhibition in Stockholm, the group has been invited to the prestigious 'Ambiente 2003' trade fair in Frankfurt where it will be able to exhibit its range of Scottish products.

HELPING HAND
Although grateful for the amount of help she has received from Government bodies, Ruth Morris admits frustration in trying to identify who can help her with specific requirements. "I could spend all my time investigating grants/funding/loans/networking groups," she bemoans, "but I have to run a business too. I wish there was someone who could just sit down and sort it all for me." However, she has been fortunate in that she has received a mixed bag of support. This has come from the Small Business Gateway; from Scottish textiles; and Lothian exports. She also enjoyed being the beneficiary of a pilot scheme organised by Scottish Textiles which gave her access to a textile consultant for 12 days. The resultant report was "invaluable", according to Ruth.

eQlibrium Issue2, March/April 2002
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