Alison Reuben and The Bluebell Journey

Next month, our founder, Alison Reuben will head to London for the National Finals of the prestigious Institute of Directors, Director of the Year Awards 2018.

After winning the Award for ‘Director of The Year – Family Business’ at the regional final back in May, this additional nomination is an exceptional achievement for an inspirational lady and the team at Bluebell are beyond excited and have everything crossed for her.

As we celebrate our 25^th year, this award really would be the icing on the cake to what has turned out to be a wonderful year for our family business.

Many of you may have already met Alison but for those of you who haven’t, or don’t know much about her, we thought now would be a great time to tell you a little bit more about her – what drives her, what inspires her, where does she get all that energy from!

Below, Alison tells you in her own words..

1. Tell us what a typical day looks like for you?

A typical day starts around 7am, liaising with the factory manager to confirm our installation diary for the day is running smoothly. I am mostly based at our showroom and to be honest, there isn’t a ‘typical day’ as every day is completely different.

I work very closely with all my team, dedicating a great deal of time helping and supporting each and every one of them in their particular role. As my factory is just two miles away from the showroom, I spend quite a bit of time between the two sites.

I’m also very active in the marketing side of the business which I believe is vitally important in maintaining a strong presence at all times. Dennis, was voted ‘Best Mascot’ by Facebook and Twitter followers of the independent review website Which Trusted Traders

Although the showroom closes at 5pm, my day continues working into the early evening most nights. I find ‘switching off’ quite difficult at times!

Alison and the team celebrating their award as Which Trusted Trader of the Month for May 2018

2. Did you always know that you wanted to have this career?

Definitely not! From a very early age I wanted to be a dancer with the Royal Ballet but realised I was too tall to ever be considered. Becoming a Bluebell Girl then became my lifelong ambition, which I achieved at the age of 16 years old. Miss Bluebell was without doubt the most inspirational lady I have ever met who showed me hard work and commitment was the only way forward. Her belief in me at the tender age of 19 years old to Captain a troupe of girls to fly out for a year’s contract to dance and deal with the theatres management in Buenos Aires, Argentina, helped me develop leadership qualities which I went on to use when I established Bluebell Fitted Furniture.

Alison with The Bluebell Girls & Tom Jones

3. What factors do you think have contributed to your success within the industry?

I realised I had a passion for interior design, but also understood I had to stand out from the crowd. I had to offer something completely different compared to all the many competitors around me. It was then I made the big decision to manufacture for myself, which enabled me to be completely bespoke and to push the boundaries, trying new ideas and offering customers exactly what they wanted to create their individual requirements within their homes.

Remaining one step ahead with new, innovative designs and products has been paramount & especially working alongside respected and established brands in the industry such as Hafele UK has enabled me to ‘think outside the box’ and wow my customers with products they never knew existed.

4. Who and what inspires you?

I grew up surrounded by a hardworking family of entrepreneurs, so my inspiration came from my parents who motivated and mentally prepared me for anything I set my mind to. Nowadays, I take inspiration from my wonderful team of designers most of whom joined me straight from graduating from university. I find they have such fabulous vision with creative minds and so eager to learn. For example, we teach them how to ‘present’ rather than ‘sell’.

As we manufacture, we listen to their innovative ideas and this enables us to push boundaries within our factory. Creating amazing bespoke furniture allows us to stand out from the crowd and we continue to remain one step ahead of the competition. We are without doubt leaders, not followers.

Our latest MMU design graduate, John.

5. Is there enough support and opportunities for women in your industry?

I personally think there are not enough women in manufacturing in the UK and I would love to become involved with mentoring women to show them what can be achieved and make an impact in this male dominated industry. I truly believe women in manufacturing is good for business but leadership opportunities are with the manufacturers themselves and there is still room for growth for women in this field.

6. What advice would you give to females starting their career?

Believe in yourself and enjoy the opportunities of being involved in an industry, which will give you immense job satisfaction. If you are committed to do the best design, offer the best service and be passionate about what you do, then success will surely follow.

I think it’s important to remember that there is no better role model for young women than women who break down gender barriers!

Over the years, we’ve been lucky enough to work with some fantastic partners and some of these relationships have truly stood the test of time.

One such relationship is with Häfele UK – a fantastic company based in Rugby who supplies us with some of the most innovative products, fitting and accessories for our fitted kitchens, bedrooms, studies and media areas.

In fact, our relationship with Häfele UK has grown significantly and we’re proud to say that we are not only a Studio Partner, but also a Centre of Excellence for this established brand, recognised worldwide for it’s quality, craftsmanship and customer service.

So what is The Studio Partner Network? The network was established to work in partnership with a host of premium independent Kitchen, Bedroom and Bathroom Studios across the UK to ensure customers have knowledgeable access to the Häfele product range. As a result, our dedicated in-house team are familiar with all the products available and pride themselves on matching your design and storage needs with the latest innovations for your home. From clever recycling options, wireless charging systems to multi-functional storage spaces – the team knows everything there is to know about the products and accessories available to transform your room into a thing of beauty AND functionality.

Handles

Whether you’re building a completely new kitchen or updating existing cupboards with new handles, Häfele have a broad range of different colours, finishes, materials and styles to ensure you find what you are looking for.

Kitchen & Living Solutions

Offering solutions to suit the latest modern interior or a more traditional classic style Häfele’s fixtures will optimise the space you are working with and improve it tenfold.

Bedroom Fittings

Häfele’s bedroom fittings collection contains everything you need to bring your design to life. They even offer innovative foldaway bed fittings to maximise bedroom space and create a fresh modern feel. We stock a broad range of their wardrobe interior fittings and elite soft close storage systems, such as tie racks, pull-out shoe racks and laundry baskets, all of which are used in many high-end hotels and homes.

To view any of Häfele’s products and to see them in action, why not pop into our Washway Road showroom? – you’d be amazed how many design options you’ll find under one roof and rest assured you’ll receive a very warm welcome from all the Bluebell Team!

Netflix, Spotify, Sonos, Amazon Prime, Sky TV – many of us will be familiar with all or some of these products and we’re finding more and more of our customers wanting to equip their homes with the latest technology to enjoy new films, binge-watch the latest box set or listen to their favourite music.

But how do you do it in style and ensure your home still looks great? The answer is to consider installing a dedicated media area or home cinema – something that’s becoming increasingly popular amongst our clients.

As we always like to be prepared at Bluebell, we asked our experienced designers and in-house installation team what the most important considerations are when planning a media area or cinema room – here are their top tips:

1. If you’re looking to build a media area, consider the acoustics. Hard floors and glass windows can cause sound problems so have a think about introducing carpeted areas too. You can also install acoustic plaster board and floorboards to help with sound quality in a cinema room.
2. Look carefully at the technology you need for your media area and plan, plan, plan! Will there be a SKY Q box and a Sonos or Bose speaker system? what about a BT box? Where will you store accessories if it’s going to include a games console too? Hidden storage options are great at disguising all those nasty wires and controller so think about shelving and cupboard space.
3. Think about the position from which you’ll watch your TV or screen – you don’t want it too high or too low so work out what chairs or sofa you’ll be using before finalising the position.
4. Will you be using a TV or Projector? Why not consider having both so the projector can be lowered for film nights or big games and retracted for more casual TV watching.
5. Think about the sound effects for you media area. 5:1 is the rule of thumb for speakers to subwoofer – no-one want a base that’s too heavy or too weak and don’t forget to incorporate them into the design so they are well placed or discreetly hidden!

The most important thing to remember throughout the process is to plan it carefully. Our team has been tasked with creating some fantastic designs and you’d be surprised to know that a media area really doesn’t need to cost the earth. With some clever planning and a little help from the experts, you really can take home entertainment to the next level.

This year, we are proud to share with you the story of our Charity of The Year – Act4Africa. As a local business, we are lucky enough to meet lots of interesting people from the area and were introduced to Altrincham-based Act4Africa by friend and business mentor Lily Newman of Morgan James Consulting. Their story really struck a chord with everyone at Bluebell as their philosophy is to help change the future of young girls across Uganda and ultimately their wider families.

So, what is Act4Africa all about and how did it begin, let us tell you more…

The Act4Africa Story

In 2000, co-founder Kathy Smedley returned to Uganda, having worked in East Africa as a young teacher many years before. She was shocked and saddened by what she found. The effects of HIV/AIDS were everywhere and whole communities were being devastated without any hope. Having lost a young, close friend to the virus in the early 80’s, Kathy and husband Martin’s personal experience of this dreadful disease meant they couldn’t just stand by. They decided to try to do something, something which used the talents and capabilities of the local African communities themselves. Back in the UK, they gathered a small group of friends and started raising funds through cake making, car boot sales and sponsored events. They raised enough to start to train a small team as health education community youth leaders in Jinja, Uganda – and Act4Africa was born.

Martin, himself a trained actor, recognized the perfect fit of Theatre for Development (TfD) as a means of communicating Act4Africa’s messages to the rural communities it served. A series of TfD programmes were developed, and the charity’s youth leaders began taking them into communities and schools, educating and informing about HIV/AIDS and stigma.

In 2006 Act4Africa started providing mobile HIV testing and counselling services, and in 2010 they began to address a cornerstone of the HIV/AIDS epidemic: gender inequality.

Their work is increasingly focused on this issue. They believe that by educating girls and women about their rights, their health, the value of their continued education, we can change not only their lives, but those of their wider peer group, family, and community.

In August 2014, co-founder Kathy Smedley sadly passed away at the age of just 65. Her legacy and inspiration continue at the heart of what they do, and they are proud to be raising funds in her name to create a lasting legacy in the form of a multi-functional community health and education centre in Mayuge District, Uganda.

Kathy’s Centre, Uganda

As they look forward, focus has turned to a number of projects. Their ‘Grow a Girl’ programme connects you, our supporters, with Ugandan teenage girls who need sponsorship to be able complete their secondary education, whilst our HEAL project is helping the women of Mayuge District to establish savings groups and work together to create small businesses. They have been recognised for our efforts in sexual and reproductive health with a USAID award for our STRIDES project, and their teams in Uganda, Malawi and Tanzania go from strength to strength building on this success.

Gladys The Goat

We have a number of fundraising events in the pipeline at Bluebell, from swear boxes in our factory, cake sales to our goat Gladys which we sponsor over in Uganda, and we hope you’ll  join us in supporting them by spreading the word and perhaps even donating yourselves.  We’ll be sharing out fundraising and more information on Gladys the Goat in the coming months.

You can sign up for a newsletter of inspiring stories about what they are up to, like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter – or of course, donate to help us continue our work changing attitudes, transforming communities, and saving lives. Click here for more details: http://www.act4africa.org

Alison Reuben with Act4Africa Founder Martin Smedley and Marketing Executive Sarah Istephan.