Meet the founder of The Ink Pot

I’m Eva. I’m 13 years old and in school year eight. I’m a pretty normal girl: I go to school, I do sport - I’m in a synchronised swimming team in Reading, play the guitar and love technology. But I also adore designing bullet journals. These are notebooks in which you create your own diary/planner/log to help organise your time and keep track of whatever you need to for example; mood, exercise, food etc. Good stationery has always been my favourite thing and it’s great fun to use all my pens to make my bullet journal look beautiful, as well as useful. 

What inspired you to launch The Ink Pot and what is the end goal?

I had been looking for an affordable dot grid bullet journal in the UK that met my needs for ages – one with thick paper, so ink wouldn’t show through it. The only one I could find was incredibly expensive. I suggested to my mum that we could make a successful business creating and selling affordable, but good quality bullet journals and supplies. As we were on holiday at the time, I caught her at a weak point and she agreed to help.

How do you set yourself apart from other businesses in your industry?

We think we’re selling the best bullet journals in the UK. They are very high-quality with super-thick paper and lay-flat binding which makes them easier to use. We also offer customers the opportunity to customise their journals – they can choose the colour of book, an image they want on the front (we have nine options or they can pick their own acronym) and a colour of foil (we have five options). Our journals can also be personalised with your initials. We hand-stamp each one here in Oxfordshire. I know that children in particular like to have different things from their friends and we allow people to choose a journal that is really unique. We are aiming to be a one-stop shop in the UK for all the key bullet journal kit.  It is why we also sell the best pens and washi tape (coloured sticky-tape which people use to decorate their journal pages).

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as an entrepreneur?

It is early days so I’m learning something new every day! But I think it’s really important to listen to people’s ideas. I have also learnt a lot about social media and how to use it to build a business. To be honest, being 13 I did have more of an idea about Instagram than my mum so she has been the one on the steepest learning curve!

With all the success stories around entrepreneurship and how innovative people have to be to take the leap. How do you think you’ve innovated your sector and why?

I don’t think I’m trying to innovate my sector. I’m really just trying to offer the best products for bullet journaling - ones that people can personalise and truly make their own.

What are your thoughts on failure?

My parents and teachers are always trying to teach me the value of failure! I know that without failing we never learn - though that sounds super cringey, it’s true. I hope that I can learn from the mistakes, which I’m sure we will make, along the way while building The Ink Pot business.

Do you have a morning routine or ritual to get your day started on the right foot?

I like to have a very big breakfast. I’m pretty healthy and like to make smoothies in the morning which makes quite a mess and drives my mum mad! As a morning person I can get moving quite quickly and get a lot done. I’m currently being home-schooled because of Covid-19 so am online for a lot of the day and spend much of the morning snacking to keep going.

If you could be in a room with an entrepreneur, who would they be and why?

There are so many amazing entrepreneurs, but I would have to pick Coco Chanel as she is an absolutely amazing person who came from nothing, and she built an amazingly successful business in a time when it was very difficult for women to do so.

What are your top tips for entrepreneurs wanting to get their business out there?

Make a plan and keep going. Everyone always tells me that businesses take time to build and I’m sure that there will be good days and bad days, but if you believe in what you’re doing, give it a try and don’t give up.

What plans do you have for ‘your business’ over the next two years?

I am hoping that bullet journaling will become more widely known in the UK and that we can build our share of the market. We will add some more product options – we are looking at some really interesting ideas at the moment - and have some new coloured journals arriving soon, which is exciting. We know that there is already a lot of stationery on the market and we need to make sure that we always offer something different that is of the highest quality.

How did you conquer those moments of doubt that so often affect entrepreneurs or stop many with great ideas – what pushes you through?

I’m only 13 and this is my first business! It’s interesting and exciting all at once, so I’m just really enjoying the learning and the experience.

Any new product launches we should know about?

We have some new coloured journals, dark green and burnt orange, coming soon. We have just introduced a black foil option for our logo stamps and personalisation, which looks incredible, particularly on our white journal. We are also adding new pens and washi tape all the time.

What’s the single most important decision that you made, that contributed to your business?

There are lots of people trying to get in on the bullet journal market and we realised we had to have a product that was not only very high quality but different to what everyone else was offering. That is why we hand-stamp our journals at home and give people so many options to customise. We can be sure of the quality because we review each journal before it is sent out and customers seem very happy with being able to personalise what they are buying.

How do you believe the evolution of tech will affect your industry over the next 10 years?

I think adults – and even children addicted to tech – will want (and need) to get a break from screens, which seem to be taking over our lives and how we do things. The ritual of writing things down by hand or drawing, will become a welcome break from technology and a way to wind down and relax. I find that planning and organising through writing things down is more enjoyable and easier to remember than typing and recording on apps or electronic calendars. There will always be a place for tech when it comes to planning and diaries but I wonder whether the love of actually writing with pens and the feel of real stationery generally will only increase as we work with screens more and more.

What would be your top marketing tip to grow a business?

I think you need to really love and believe in your product and make sure that you are offering the very best quality. My mum and I check every order before it is sent out, to make sure we are happy with it. I think it’s also better to start out in a small way and plan ahead.

Were you nervous at the outset?

No, I believe in the product which I think is very important.

Any moments where you thought you’ve bitten off more than you can chew?

Yes, many but most of all when I realised I had to teach my mum about bullet journaling.

What do you think gives a brand longevity?

I am hoping that our personalisation and the unique quality of our products will mean that people who love bullet journals or who want to start bullet journaling will come to The Ink Pot first, because they know they will find the best products.