LEG-UP
Mum’s deadly ‘ticking time-bomb’ condition inspired £250k sexy lingerie brand
Ella Vine, 33, from Essex created her own easier to fasten stockings using poppers and now business is booming
SUFFERING from a painful and potentially deadly condition Ella Vine must wear compression socks every day to stop blood clots from forming in her legs.
The mum-of-one developed deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after a nasty car accident as a teenager - but it was her illness that inspired her sexy lingerie business that is on track to turn over £250,000 this year.
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For years Ella, 33, who lives in Essex, struggled to keep up the medical stockings that she needs to keep her alive.
"The compression stockings that I have to wear everyday do not allow the blood to pool in my leg therefore preventing clots", Ella told The Sun.
"I need them to manage the pain too. It is very scary to have blood clots, especially when you're a mum of a young child."
"If you have a blod clot that travels to your lungs you can die on the spot.
"Attaching the stockings to a suspender belt was a nightmare.
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"It took a long time and I usually had to give up fasting it on the back of the leg all together."
After ten years of struggling she came up with a better idea.
She replaced a traditional fastening used to attach stockings to a garter belt with a simple popper.
Ella realised that if she struggled with stockings then there must be other people too - and not just those suffering from DVT.
And it wasn't just about developing something practical, Ella wanted to feel sexy too.
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“I wanted to improve my own quality of life but I was convinced other women were struggling with the same issue,” said Ella.
"You can feel sexy even in medical stockings - it is such a great reason to wear sexy underwear every day!".
She decided to start her own self-named online shop stocking sexy lingerie using poppy fastenings.
Now her underwear is sold across the world and even worn by burlesque dancers on stage.
Ella admits that the hardest part of starting the business was finding cash.
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She successfully applied for a £20,000 loan repayable over five years from the Government-backed Start-Up Loans Company, which offers a 6 per cent fixed rate on borrowing up to £25,000.
She also got an additional £20,000 lump sum from an external investor - Paul T. Lajszczak, an entrepreneur and the manager of property investing platform Crowdfunding Place, who became her business partner.
She met him completely by chance while doing freelance PR. She said: "He loved the idea of poppy suspenders and saw a business potential in it."
Despite customising her own stockings her business focus is on selling non-medical underwear.
Although, she is planning to start a sub-brand catering for DVT sufferers like herself next year.
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But it’s still early days and Ella admits she doesn’t pay herself a wage so she can keep ploughing profits back into the business.
She also continues to work part-time in a fundraising job with a charity supporting fibromyalgia, a condition which causes extreme, uncontrollable pain throughout the body.
Ella's top business tips
- Work from home - Working from home has helped me as a mother. It allows me to choose my business hours and have more flexibility. I would advise to do it if you can especially when your business is still in the early stages.
- Don’t let money undermine your creativity When I first got the idea for the poppy suspender belts and poppy stockings I didn’t have the money to fund it or knew how to create it. But I was confident that it would work and started to think about how I can make it possible.
- Ask for help if you need it- The mentoring programme really helped me in creating a business plan and directing me to the right people. You can’t be an expert in everything so don’t be afraid to ask for help.
- Believe in yourself and your dreams - Plenty of people will tell you that you can’t achieve it, you have to believe in your idea.
Ella says one of the pros of running her own business is being able to work from home and spend more time with her son.
“I can do both of my jobs from home, which makes things a lot easier. I can go with my 10-year-old son to the park during the afternoon and work late in the evening on the business.
“It’s about getting things done in your own time.”
More about starting your own business
She's now looking forward to growing the business even more and is on track to turnover £250,000 this year.
She said: “I initially launched a little lingerie brand but I never expected it to grow so quickly.
“I think the most important thing is to really believe in your idea and to be confident.
“I knew that my idea would work for women everywhere and I’m glad that my product allows them to choose how they want to wear their suspenders.”
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