I’m delighted to share that I’ve recently received a start-up grant from Business Gateway.
This came alongside the realisation that if I want to dedicate more time to my photography, I need to make this long-standing “hobby” more sustainable. That’s a slightly scary step – when you love something deeply, putting a business label on it can feel risky. So this is very much me dipping my toe in.
The grant was signposted to me by GrowBiz, and in particular Karen Martin, who was exactly the encouraging voice I needed. Sometimes you just need someone to tell you it’s a good idea – and give you a wee nudge.
With the grant approved, I made a trip to the wonderful Ffordes Photographic in Beauly and invested in my first professional printer. It was a carefully considered purchase, and it’s already making a huge difference: I can now produce beautiful archival prints at around 50% of my previous costs, while also holding stock for galleries and my own website.
To mark this step, I’ve launched a series of six ‘Mini’ limited edition prints, produced on A5 Hahnemühle Pearl with rounded corners. They’re available now via my website or from Spey Bank Studio in Grantown.
I’ve also added gift vouchers – because yes, this is all rather last-minute if you’re Christmas shopping!
It feels good to take this step, and I’m excited to see where it leads.
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