FEP director Cllr Johnathan Lane recently visited Anna Mcloughlin, owner of Anna Mcloughlin Fine Jewellery based near Lydney in the Forest of Dean. Anna is an incredibly talented goldsmith, designing and creating her own jewellery from her garden ‘eco-studio’.
In terms of achievements and recognition, Anna is definitely punching above her weight as a small business. She has recently been recognised by the British Hallmarking Council and the National Association of Jewellers by winning the Hallmarking Awareness and Learning Online award (HALO). This is a prestigious, national award for jewellers who recognize the importance of full hallmarks in creating quality pieces. Anna was a joint winner with the much larger business Harriet Kelsall Jewellery, so really is a testament to the determination and talent of this ‘one woman’ Forest of Dean business.
Not only did she win the HALO Award, Anna was shortlisted for a sustainability award from Heritage Crafts and Quest, and received an honourable mention in their press release, which is again huge considering the standard of these awards and the competition.
Faced with needing to find a new workspace and wanting to keep her green principles at the very core of the business, Anna opened up a studio in her own garden, essentially reducing her carbon footprint and her commute to just a few minutes. The studio itself is a timber framed building, insulated with recycled plastic bottles, powered by solar panels and an eco-flow battery, and all fixtures are adapted and re-used from her previous studio/workshop.
She also uses an electric oxygen concentrator to produce a hotter flame with a minimal amount of gas needed for soldering, a small ‘Eco-22 Compliant’ wood burner and has plans to install a compost toilet and purified rainwater system.
Anna’s values also make their way into her day-to-day work as a goldsmith. To keep her carbon footprint as low as possible, Anna uses recycled and ethical materials, sourced mainly direct from her clients, in the form of their own old but often highly sentimental pieces of unworn jewellery. Any “new” metal used is recycled and gemstones sourced from a very select number of suppliers offering full traceability. She also uses lab grown stones and greener alternatives to diamonds, such as Moissanite.
Gemstones have historically been mined with unethical and cruel practices, so this allows Anna to create beautiful pieces without compromising her values. All these measures Anna has taken means she has been able to go through the rigorous verification required to become a certified B Corp; a company officially using their business as a force for good, and for a small business with limited resources this is a real achievement.
We discussed problems Anna has faced as an entrepreneur, which include,
. Lack of suitable units - high rent and bills, coupled with long, restrictive leases are prohibitive. She added the units were often in such a poor state and required so much money to get them up to speed, that it just wasn’t worth it.
.Recruitment - The business is managed entirely by Anna herself with no outside support, she does all the prep work, the gold smithing, admin, communications, and everything in-between.
However, Anna advised this isn’t necessarily a major obstacle and expanding just doesn’t suit her business model, for example, after asking her customers, they told Anna that they would prefer pieces to be made by her from start to finish, rather than employing someone else to help. There are resourcing issues, lack of time to train someone up and lack of funding to secure an apprentice. Anna explained she looked into a government scheme encouraging businesses to hire apprentices, but she had to take on 30 to be eligible which is simply impossible for a small business.
We discussed whether Anna was interested in being involved in the Inspiring the Forest project, either within a creative industries or entrepreneur theme, Anna as a businesswoman and a jeweller could bring a brilliantly unique perspective. Anna was particularly interested in offering support as an entrepreneur, whether that be through filming ‘day in the life’ at her studio or recording interviews. Understandably Anna could not commit time away from her studio for the FEP, but any insight she can offer will be a hugely valuable for young people. Anna's journey shows students that careers do not have to be a one size fits all, that starting up a business on your own CAN be done, and it CAN fit around your life. Inspiring the Forest aims to encourage big aspirations and innovation amongst Forest students, and Anna's business is a perfect example of what hard work, skill, and thinking outside the box can do.
If you want to read more about Anna's incredible business and take a look at her jewellery, head to her website here