Exploring Mill Pond Flower Farm: and A Journey into The Business Of Selling Flowers
I had the amazing opportunity to visit Mill Pond Flower Farm in Foulden, not far from Berwick but just over the border in Scotland. The flower farm, run by Paula Baxter is also the home of The Business Of Selling Flowers run by Paula, and two other dedicated, full-time flower farmers named Carol and Claire, who live elsewhere in the UK but the three come together now and again to help each other out and to discuss their work and have a photoshoot together. Join me as we delve into this charming farm, discover their online courses, and get to know the passionate individuals behind it all.
Mill Pond Flower Farm captivates me with its rustic beauty. The picturesque farm, with views of the Cheviots, offers a tranquil haven for flower enthusiasts and nature lovers alike.
Empowering Flower Farmers Through their online courses, Carol, Paula, and Claire's joint venture, The Business Of Selling Flowers, equips flower farmers and sellers with essential knowledge. They offer eight practical and comprehensive courses that cover topics like pricing, profit, selling, and the art of growing flowers. These courses empower individuals to become successful and profitable flower growers.
During my visit, I shared a memorable and lighthearted moment with Carol, Paula, and Claire. As I photographed them for their website and social media, they playfully turned the tables and captured behind-the-scenes shots of me. This experience shows their friendly nature and their desire to authentically represent their work.
Mill Pond Flower Farm, along with The Business Of Selling Flowers, brings together the beauty of nature and the entrepreneurial spirit. With their online courses, Carol, Paula, and Claire encourage aspiring flower farmers to thrive in the industry. My time at the farm was truly special, and I hope that these photographs serve not only as a useful illustrative branding portfolio but also as a testament to their dedication and camaraderie.
Tricks of the trade!
Taking payments in a rural setting.
Foliage for floristry
Cutting flowers
Potting table
Check out the Business Of Selling Flowers website for more info or check them out on Instagram
22 Years in Business - An Interview with Sarah (by Sophie, Marketing Apprentice)
An Interview with Sarah, organised by Sophie (marketing apprentice, Pictorial Photography)
Sarah has been an independent photographer since 2001, growing her business over the years and adapting to life's challenges (such as lockdown). As Sarah's apprentice, learning the way her business works and seeing how much can change in only a year and a half, I asked Sarah some questions about the story of Pictorial Photography.
When did you start the business and why?
Sarah in 2001
I was asked by a friend to photograph her wedding when I was at university studying Contemporary Photographic Practice. I was only 19 but I knew this was what I wanted to do, so I thought up the business name, registered ‘Pictorial Photography’ with HMRC and got insured. Soon after that, colleagues and friends started asking for photos of their families and children. I also took on a few more weddings in Newcastle - shooting on film! I worked at Northumbria University by then so it was more of a weekend job for the first 5 years.
Leo and Stella, Sarah’s children
Over those first 5 years I grew the business and built my website, which meant that when I had my first child, Leo, I could work around him. Leaving employment was less of a choice and more of a necessary decision. Self-employment offers many opportunities and benefits like flexibility, so it was my only option. It was difficult at first, juggling childcare and working when they slept (when I was exhausted), but I have no regrets.
What was your goal for Pictorial then and now?
At the start the weddings were something fun to photograph at the weekends, then my photography grew into a flexible job to be able to work around my babies. I used to photograph a lot of children when mine were young and it fitted in well with school times. Now they have grown into teens, I focus more on business and branding photography, aiming to work less at weekends.
Our old Quayside studio
I guess my business has followed the flow of my life to an extent. I find I have a lot in common with my clients so I must be attracting people at a similar stage in life. I’m very into marketing and business development now and this year we have been working on a better CRM system and a much-improved customer journey for clients. It feels more professional and saves a huge amount of time on a day-to-day basis.
What did you do before?
I used to work at Northumbria University’s Design School, helping students create their vision in the studio and learn Adobe software. I was an Apple Mac demonstrator and a part-time lecturer. I loved working there and although they were flexible and accommodating employers, even after going half-time the long commute didn’t work for me when my children were little.
What was your biggest learning curve?
Sarah working in our new studio and office at the Ramparts
It took me a really long time to feel happy and confident with studio portraits, getting lighting to look natural and flattering in the studio was a challenging skill to master. I used to call myself a ‘natural light’ photographer but that was a total cop-out because I just wasn’t confident with studio lights.
I’m so glad I worked on those skills because I can now shoot with flattering and consistent light in a warm environment at any time of year. Being a ‘natural light photographer’ used to mean that my sessions were often cancelled last minute due to bad weather.
How do you spend your spare time?
Sarah and Marley
Spare time, what’s that? But seriously, I enjoy walking my dog Marley when it’s not windy or raining, I love a bit of DIY, but I’m usually driving the teenage kids around in Mum's Taxi! When we get the chance I love to travel with my husband Aaron, and sometimes the kids. I feel like I have to completely leave the country to properly unwind from work.
What changes have you made to your marketing strategy?
22 years ago, things like having a listing in the ‘yellow pages’, newspaper ads and putting posters up around town were key to getting business. Nowadays most of our marketing activities happen online.
How much time do you spend working on your business each day?
Probably a couple of hours each day, even when I am at home I listen to business podcasts and have a large library of photography books and business training and I love to tweak the website! I sound like a right saddo but I adore it!
Do you remember your first day?
Yes! I remember sitting in my little flat thinking up the name, phoning to ask my mum what she thought about it, and registering it on HMRC, thinking that was all a bit scary. Then I started making a physical ‘mood board’ for my logo. No such thing as Pinterest back then! I remember sticking things on it like a Tunnocks tea cake wrapper and labels from ice cream cartons.
Over the years have you used any exceptional professional services for your business?
Gosh, so so many. I’m a huge advocate for getting help with the things you don’t enjoy or things that aren’t in your skill set. When you are self-employed you do take on a lot of things which push you out of your comfort zone and you have to be quite adaptable. There are certain things that are downright awful to do, for example, I find working with numbers totally mind-numbing so I’ve always had a good bookkeeper and accountant to make sure everything is right in that department. I’m also not a fan of cleaning and would much rather be taking photos, it’s something that I feel is definitely worth paying for and a nice clean environment certainly improves how I feel.
One of the earlier versions of our website
In the early days, I enjoyed working with creative website designers but it was very expensive for such a small business and I knew that it would be something I would enjoy so I learned the skills to create and update my own site. I do get help with SEO (not in my skill set) from online SEO gurus like Lee Fletcher and Menekshe Stewart, whose training is quick, clear and easy to understand.
For the website, I have commissioned local proof-reader Trudi Morrison to check over my words.
I’ve had various headshots taken by lovely photographer friends - Caroline, Alex, and Amber, never an easy task!
I love attending Business Northumberland and Rural Business Growth Service events and still go along to their training days to stay up to date with new business-y things. There’s always something new to learn!
There are a few amazing online services I couldn’t work without now too: my website is built on Squarespace; our new (amazing!!) CRM system is Studio Ninja; and our photo hosting platform is Pic-Time.
How has your job changed?
My first few weddings were shot on film and at the start the competition was mostly older men. That changed when everything went digital and a lot of them retired instead of learning the new technology. Nowadays there are lots more women in photography and it’s a shared market, probably because self-employment ties in well with family life.
Customers know a lot more about photography and take photos every day on fancy mobile phones now. They also have access to constant amazing imagery online which means they have much higher expectations than they did in the past.
When my children were little I worked from the kitchen table (into the wee small hours after they went to bed). Now I only work from my studio and my work/life balance is much better (not perfect, but better).
Why do you think Pictorial Photography has stood out from other businesses and been successful?
I think it’s customer service and trying to think about everything from the clients’ point of view.
I’m always learning and keep up to date with new technology, I love going on courses. I’m currently learning video to create short but beautiful films for websites which I’m really excited about.
What is your proudest business achievement of the last 22 years?
Moving from the kitchen table to my first studio was a really big moment but my proudest achievement is the day I got the keys to my (current) new, bigger studio and was able to start growing the business again after covid. When it seemed like other businesses were shrinking back, we were expanding and optimistic for the future with a lovely new space from which to do it.
The entrance to our lovely new studio and office at the Ramparts Business Park
Where do you see the business in 5 years?
Hopefully still doing what I do but with more branding and product work in the studio. I love working with small business owners. I’d also love to get back into a bit of teaching so have been looking at starting that online too.
If you would like to take a look at our branding and product work, check out the business pages HERE.
I couldn't have done this without you ❤️
In December I photographed a family of 5, aged 20’ something cousins for their beloved granny who hadn’t seen them all year. They wanted to re-create a photograph that sits on her mantlepiece from when they were young children.
I recognised the family name when they booked and through talking to them realised that I took the actual photograph that I was being asked to recreate (how old do I feel?!).
I remember the original photograph I took on the lovely red Laura Ashley sofa in the living room. I remember the children playing on the trampoline in the garden. I remember them giggling, clambering over the sofa, and trying to get them to sit and look (still not easy with 5 young children).
The session stuck in my mind as it was my first commissioned family location session for someone I didn’t know. They didn’t realise but it was a very special session for me - to know that people actually wanted to book and pay for what I was offering.
Pictorial Photography turns 20 years old this month. It has grown and evolved and become even more wonderful, just like those young adults I photographed in December.
I couldn’t have done any of this without you guys so to celebrate the 20th birthday, I’ve decided to pay it forward (or is it backward?) this year with 20 exciting surprises for clients past and present. Watch this space!
2020 Vision Project: A Tribute to the Heroes of the Covid-19 Pandemic
Jeremy Evans GP
I was delighted to have been chosen as one of the photographers to take part in this UK-wide project creating a tribute to honour the NHS workers and heroes of the Covid-19 pandemic.
My brief included showing the individuals ‘behind the mask’ so after a bit of research, I found 2 NHS workers who also choose to save lives in their spare time. Jeremy and Claire both work for NHS and volunteer for the RNLI which is an essential service for those who live on the coast.
I am now able to share some of the work that I created as part of the ‘2020 Vision Project’ as their 'Behind The Mask' showcase exhibition was held in London at the weekend.
Claire Mabon Ward Clerk
58 Berwick People Working Hard Throughout the Pandemic
Lockdown Workers Project
32 portraits in one day highlighting Independent businesses in Berwick upon Tweed. We appreciate you!
“Nothing will work unless you do.”
Have I missed anyone? Let me know in the comments :)
Two Women in Yellow Frocks Making Pretty Pictures
Pictorial Window Illustrating by Katie Chappell to celebrate Stage 3 OVO Energy Tour of Britain coming to Berwick!
Berwick is hosting the start of stage three of the 2019 OVO Energy Tour of Britain on Monday 9th September. The cycle race will start from the centre of Berwick on Tweed and will cross the Old Bridge as the race heads away along the Tweed Valley and onto Ford and Wooler. The route will race along the Northumberland Coast, past Bamburgh and Warkworth castles, showcasing our beautiful area through worldwide television coverage.
The people of Berwick are planning on hosting the warmest of welcomes to spectators and cyclists by decorating all the shop windows and displaying fabulous brightly painted bicycles at local visitor hotspots and roundabouts in the Northumberland colours of yellow and red.
https://berwicktrust.org.uk/tour-of-britain-comes-to-berwick-upon-tweed/
After wracking my brains on how Pictorial Photography could take part and coming up will all sorts of crazy ideas, my sister (a super talented illustrator, Katie Chappell) suggested that she could simply paint the window, amazing!
Katie created a digital design for me over the top of a photograph of the window, the design showed exactly what the window would look like before she even started (you can see a printout of the mock-up in the picture below). Once I was happy with the proposal, she came in to paint it, the whole process took around 5/6 hours and it was fascinating to watch, people were stopping in the street to watch and coming over to see it all happening, we set up some time-lapse videos and I took some photographs so you can see the progress happening.
We had the best day together, the matching dresses were totally unintentional, I hope you like our little windy photoshoot in front of the storefront display at the end haha!
Check out Katie’s website for more information on storefront illustration and window illustration https://www.katiechappell.com/liveillustration
https://www.tourofbritain.co.uk/
Please let me know your thoughts on yellow dresses, bike races and window painting in the comments below, I’m here for the chat like.
Princesses For a Day: Sarah and Emily, Winners of 'Cash for Kids' Auction Prize
It’s every little girl’s dream to be a princess and for Sarah and Emily Macleod (aged 5 and 3) it became a reality last week when they were treated like royalty at Wedderburn Castle. A day of pampering and being treated like a princess was their prize in the Radio Borders Cash for Kids charity auction. The winning bidder was their dad Ross, who bought it for his 5-year-old daughter Sarah.
Radio Borders Cash for Kids manager, Candy Rafferty, said: “One of the radio presenters happened to know Ross and told me that he had two daughters and tragically his wife had died, so they didn’t have a mum. I phoned the owners of Wedderburn who immediately said they would be very happy to have an extra princess. I phoned the dressmaker who immediately said she would design two dresses. I phoned the hairdresser and it was the same.
“It’s just such a lovely example of the generosity of Borders people, and as the charity manager at Radio borders Cash for Kids, I am blown away by it every single day.”
On arriving at the castle for a day, Sarah and Emily were greeted in regal style and escorted to the Wedderburn’s grandest chamber, where they had their hair styled and were fitted out with tiaras and princess outfits from ‘A Perfect Fit’ in Coldstream.
Attending the princesses were Brian Rafferty, Royal Warrant holder and hairdresser to HRH the Queen when she is in Scotland, and a dressmaker, lady-in-waiting, and courtiers from Radio Borders and Wedderburn Castle.
Amongst the princesses’ royal duties was the official opening of Wedderburn Barns, a new rustic party and wedding venue in the former Georgian stables at Wedderburn Castle. The princesses cut the ribbon on the barns, toured the premises and had official photographs taken at the castle and barns by Pictorial Photography.
Other official engagements included sealing documents and letters at the grand dining room table at Wedderburn and inspecting the castle and grounds to ensure that all is in order. Lunch for the princesses included a selection of special cupcakes designed especially for the day by Borders Cakes and Cupcakes.
A horse-drawn carriage ride around the ground of the castle finished off their day, courtesy of the Cornhill Carriage Company. Then after spending the day being treated like royalty in the castle, it was back to reality for the two girls.
Cash for Kids is the official charity of Radio Borders and provides a helping hand to children around the Scottish Borders and North Northumberland. They are currently running their Christmas Mission to help the thousands of children in poverty who would otherwise wake up to a Christmas without presents this year. They’re asking you to buy just one extra present this year - new and unwrapped gifts suitable for children and young people or make a cash donation online, in person or over the phone.
Read more at: http://www.berwickshirenews.co.uk/news/the-cash-for-kids-charity-1-3197082
BeDigital Northumberland Springboard Programme
In October, I was selected as one of 20 women entrepreneurs in Northumberland to participate in the fully funded 'BeDigital Springboard Programme' which is a 6 month intensive programme of business mentoring, masterclasses, meetups, and Google+ mastermind sessions.
As part of BeDigital, a photographer and a video company visited to help create my story. It's interesting to be on the other side of the camera and feel what my customers must feel like. I usually love to chat but I found speaking on video very difficult!
Thank you to RJM Photos and MC Media for taking the time to come up to Berwick; it was a great fun day.
Here is the interview article that accompanies the photography:
Hi Sarah, can you tell us about yourself and what inspired you to set up your business?
Hello, I'm Sarah and I have run a small business called Pictorial Photography in Berwick for 9 years now. I specialise in portraiture and photograph family groups in natural locations. I also do professional business headshots for ambitious and creative individuals and I style themed backdrops for children's photo sessions in the studio.
I had wanted to be a photographer since the age of 14 after starting a beginners photography course at the local community centre, simply for 'something to do' as a bored teen in a small town. I soon became hooked on the magic of the darkroom and enjoyed photographing architectural details and dilapidated buildings. I furthered my studies at college with a graphic design and print background and went on to contemporary photographic practice at university. It was actually long after graduation that I discovered portraiture was where my passion really lay.
After studying, I worked at Northumbria University Design School as an Apple Mac and photography demonstrator for 4 years. I helped students to realise their design and fashion ideas in the studio and demonstrated how to use specialist software to produce their work. After maternity leave, I started to grow tired of the commute and wanted to spend time in a more creatively rewarding position that could work around having my own family. Employment in the creative sector is rare in a small town so starting Pictorial Photography seemed like a natural step.
What tips would you give other women who are thinking about setting up their own business?
Surround yourself with positive people. I am part of a very positive group of female photographers, which started on Facebook. We support each other with advice, ideas and encouragement. If there is a photography event or conference, we often meet up and go together. This is great as some of us might not go by ourselves, having the company of other female photographers is a real plus.
I'd also say not to be scared to ask for help; you can't do everything. For example, recruiting a professional copywriter to help with editing the text on my website saved a lot of time and enabled me to get across what I wanted to say in a much clearer way than I could have on my own.
We love your website and your studio looks fabulous. What are the benefits of the internet for your business?
Thank you! A lot of time has been spent in making my website easy to use and informative so that customers have a positive experience right from the start.
The internet also helps me run the business much more efficiently. I use tools like Eventbrite for managing online bookings, Paypal for taking payments, and Mailchimp for creating and sending out newsletters. Sharing what is happening on social media is a great free way to keep in touch with my customers.
What are your future plans for Pictorial Photography?
Alongside what I already do, I have started to create online articles to help customers. I want to use the website to share lots of helpful tips, features and free resources. Currently I am writing an article on 'How to prepare your skin for a headshot session when you've only got one week to go'. This will make sure people get the most benefit out of their photography session. Providing more content online is something I'm passionate about and is an area I want to grow the business into.
Name of interviewee: Sarah Jamieson
Business name: Pictorial Photography
Website: www.pictorialphotography.co.uk
Facebook: www.facebook.com/PictorialPhoto
Twitter: twitter.com/SarahPictorial
Business type: Lifestyle Photographer
Location: Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland
You can visit the BeDigital website to find out more about the other women HERE, there are also great resources for those thinking of starting their own business or just getting a bit more 'digital'.
New strategy planning. It outgrew the folder!
Written by Sarah