Finally- THE REBRAND

I've wanted to rebrand since I went full-time, 3 years ago! But it was such a big thing; it was going to be expensive- not to mention, time consuming. I also had a lot more investing in machinery to do. I was moving to Shropshire to take my dream full-time. I didn't want to do a big move, settle two small kids, and rebrand a tiny little business. There was always Anita (my anxiety), telling me, "This won't last long, there's no point, you'll be back as a teaching assistant within 6 months." Thank you for your never-ending support, Anita. I'm going to invest my life anyway and see where this takes me. 

Six months later, I was going strong. But the name Aurora's Destination had fully stuck. I went on: early mornings, late nights, investing, investing, investing. I was on a roll, mostly. Although, some months were tough. There would be no paid work, but lots of other things to be cracking on with, like website building, new designs, graphics, taking photos, and building an online presence. Thankfully, me and the kids always saw the joy in the little things and enjoyed a simple life outside of work.

All of those background jobs take a lot of time and don't actually pay. Although, without them, online businesses wouldn't exist, so they're essential.

But with two small children, my working hours consisted of 9:30am–2:45pm, if all the home jobs were done, the school didn't call, and no one needed me to do anything extra because "I'm the one at home". I could also fit in some extra working hours between 8:15pm and 6am if I fancied giving up some valuable sleeping time. Not my favourite, but it was a regular occurrence anyway.

This dream was mine, and I was grabbing it by the balls, even if I did have what felt like 10 million other things to do.

I originally named the business after my daughter, Aurora. I was 19 when she was born. It was her that inspired me. Before her, I did several jobs (often more than one at once): events, labouring, childcare, pub work. But during pregnancy, I took to crafts and I loved it.

That was it. I wanted to build something for us, and I was going to name it after her. And so my tiny little hobby was born in 2016.

I didn't know I'd go on to have another child, and I definitely didn't know I'd genuinely consider opening up a shop one day with my once-little hobby business name above it. But what I did know was that I couldn't leave one child out.

My son's name is Rowan, after the Rowan tree. I was already so nature-inspired that having his name reflected in my logo and branding colours wasn't just an easy choice, it was a pleasure. And it made me feel like both children were included.

But once I took this side hustle full-time, I felt momentum building and the constant pressure to point out Rowan's part in the whole thing.

"See here, Rowan, bits of red - for you!"

Meanwhile, my daughter's name is printed on every single item that passes our way. All our friends are wearing the clothes. And she knows one day Mummy dreams of having a shop with her name above the door.

FUCK.

Why didn't I change it before I built a website, registered online, and invested a bucket tonne of money!?

After 3 exhausting years of parenting, building a business, and reassuring both my children I love them the same, we were due to move again. All the stock (and we now have thousands of pounds worth of stock) would be pulled out, lugged across the country, and the journey would go on.

Or would it...

Could I rebrand? Should I do it now? Why am I always wanting to rebrand during a move? Haha. I think it's the fresh-start vibes.

But it felt right.

I weighed up the pros and cons. I had way more stock now. I'd built into it. The name was trusted. The website... the hours put into that! The domain. The cost of transferring it all and going through everything and changing it. Then rebuilding the stock. Re-doing the deisngs. 

But it would be mine. Completely mine. And it felt like a level-up.

With the kids being a bit older, the never-ending support of an amazing fiancé, and a whole tribe of incredible women, I felt strong enough to tackle the massive job. Not to mention, I'd worked hard to build enough money for it to seem more affordable.

We're going for it!

Out with the old. No getting comfortable and settled. Get it gone.

As we build our lives in a new county, we're building dreams. It's going to take a while, but here we go.

We're building an organic cotton, eco-friendly boutique. Which warms my heart, because it's kind of where I wanted the business to go from the start. But polyester blends were cheaper, and I was focused on the money.

But when I step back and think, what do I want? I want to bring people clothes that feel great. I want people to shop guilt-free, knowing their clothes are affordable and organic. I hate fast fashion made from plastic, exploiting humans and destroying our planet.

I want to be mindful and sustainable.

And so I shall.

Good-quality clothing doesn't need to cost an arm and a leg. But cheap clothing... it just shouldn't be made.

But it is. Because it's made not to last. Because it's made to be replaced. Because it's made for profit. Not for the person making it, oh no. Profit for some greedy bastard who doesn't care about our planet or future generations.

My clothes might cost more, but keeping them as affordable as I can will always be a goal, 

In a world so focused on fast fashion, I just want to be able to provide a better option.

Good clothes are meant to last and feel good. But when your clothes do fade or begin to get holes, I'll be here to show you how to fix them. And if they're beyond repair, I'll be here to show you how to turn them into rugs and other home decor.

Because this is the mindful clothing brand that actually does care about the people and the planet.

Stay tuned and thanks for being a part of this!

Roxy xx