Season 5 Episode 6: Orange and Green should always be seen! We talk with the designers at The Outdoor Edit, a bold new Scottish brand reimagining how we design and enjoy our outdoor spaces.

Hello and welcome to Buying and Beyond, the podcast that takes you behind the scenes of retail buying. We're Kate and Linz and together we have over 30 years experience in retail. We're talking all things retail buying and beyond with real people in retail. This season we're joined by more guests, retail buyers, retail businesses, big and small, telling us their stories, how they got started and what inspires and excites them about retail. We lift the lid on what brands need and buyers expect. So grab your drink of choice and come and have a giggle with us. So today we are really excited to have with us the design team behind a brand new outdoor furniture accessories brand called the Outdoor Edit. At the Outdoor Edit, they believe that your outdoor space is just as important as your indoor space. And as a Scottish owned brand, they are dedicated to helping you transform your outdoor spaces with trend inspired solutions that reflect your unique tastes and styles. So Caitlin, Claire, thank you so much for joining us. Welcome. Hi guys. Thank you for having us. Hi. No problem. So shall we dive straight in there? Do you want to tell us a bit more about the outdoor radio? What's the brand about? How it all came about? Dive straight in. Yeah. Yeah. So just like what you were saying, we've been seeing a lot of exciting stuff in the indoor market, loads of really fun cushions, really things and like stripes. So really great on-trend patterns and colors. And while there's a lot of great outdoor furniture out there, we just thought that outdoor accessories market isn't living up to that, living up to the same level as the indoor market. So we wanted people to be able to take their personality and have it in their outfit, in their interiors, and then bring it into the gardens as well. Yeah, exactly. And like we were just saying as well, like the outdoor space, should necessarily, since COVID, be considered as, you know, just like a living room, an outdoor living room, essentially. Um, yeah. And we're just kind of fill in that gap that we haven't really seen in a lot of, um, like we. Like an extension of your living space really, isn't it? Exactly. Yeah, exactly. It's just kind of dressing up the outdoors a little bit more because removing away from playing it safe with the neutrals and grays a bit. Um, we just want people to be able to choose something that really suits them and is a bit more bold and exciting. Fantastic. Brilliant. So. How did it all come about? How did you get started? And we can see you've got some amazing themes in the range this year. Do want to just tell us a little bit more about those and what your inspiration was behind it? Yeah, of course. I mean, we could go on about the themes for forever. could fill this full hour with talking about each of them. I mean, basically, mean, how it all starts is obviously we're doing a lot of trend forecasting, going to loads of European design fairs, Solone's one. I was just at Clark and well as well. So I'm doing a wee nosy there and take a lot of inspiration from Maison as well. And just kind of see what's out there and then see what the future trends are as well as current ones as well. And then of course we have, you know, Pantone, you've got WGSN, all the kind of online trend forecasters that influence things like color patterns, design trends, you know, all that. And yeah, essentially we've come up with six. quite in depth themes that people can take inspiration from to dress up their garden and give it a complete makeover. Yeah, we really want to make sure there's something for everyone. So there's a mix of more subtle neutral palettes that are bit soothing and then some really bold, exciting palettes that kind of give you that kind of really warm summer feel. We also, we kind of look at things like fashion week as well. we... kind of seeing the fashion week colour palettes that come out from Milan, Paris and things then start to trickle into interiors and then eventually into outdoor. So we're bringing that forward a little bit and bringing outdoor a bit more into line with the indoor. Because we found in the UK it tended to be a little bit later. Let's just dive into it. Yeah, the themes. OK, starting off, probably the boldest and most bright one, the one that we've actually been receiving quite a lot of attention on, is Moments of Joy. Yeah. Because of that huge bright pop of pink color and a brilliant trend color that I think we're to be seeing a lot more, particularly in 26 as well. Mostly, I would say this trend was influenced by a trend that was forecasted by WGSN called kidults. It's very Gen Z led and essentially it's more about encouraging, embracing your own inner child, which is quite sweet. And they've quoted something called glimmers, which is essentially defined as a small moment of joy. So that's where that inspiration has come from. And loads of geometric patterns, of, you know, brightness, boldness. It's great. That parasol is brilliant as well. That's a really interesting trend to tap into. Did you say it was called kidult? Kidult, yeah. Kids and adults. It plays into that kind of nostalgic feel where people want to capture that feeling of, I guess, the summer holidays where you had nothing to worry about. You just had to spend your time enjoying the summer. So we've gone with really like neon brights. They really like punch you in the face. They're very bold, exciting. And there's something really different. We don't see much of that really punchy bright stuff in the market. unless you're looking at kind of the cheaper, lower quality products. So if you want something that's a bit more premium and elastrial summer, and that'll actually fit within a color scheme that you want to have in your garden, it's not just random colors everywhere. It's actually something considered, but it's still playful and fun. That's what we're going for with Moments of Joy. I love that. And what sort of product types are in the ranges and is that replicated throughout each of the themes? Yes, exactly. So it's really things to dress up your garden. So we have a kind of smaller bistro set to fit those little kind of patio spaces and balconies. We have a wide range of cushions and pretty much every colour you can imagine and different kind of trims and frills. We've got parasols, lighting and fire pits as well that fit across all the themes. So we were really thinking of dressing up the furniture you might already have or adding to a small space. and also little things like the lighting and fire pits to make sure you can enjoy your garden into the evening and maybe when the weather is not quite as nice. So all the themes have products across all of those. I mean, for us, it's really important to keep it versatile because a lot of people, you know, they might just have like a small little balcony and not really have anything to do with it. They might just use it on the off chance, but it's not really a space that you can know, sit and like read a good book in etc. Or like really feel like it's your own space. So having products that allow you to inject your own personality, like you were saying earlier, into whatever outdoor space you have, tying back into having an outdoor living room somewhere that you can feel relaxed and at ease in, is what this brand was all about essentially. That's lovely how accessible you've made that. Yeah, you're saying that you don't have to have a large garden. And so often you see these like country and home magazines and you just see all these inspiration pictures of huge, huge garden, you just think, oh, maybe one day, you know, and then and maybe they need to splash out on all those different products and colors. But actually, you're making it much easier for them for anybody to to access that and for anybody to add, like, as you say, a bit of personality into maybe a small space. Yeah. We're lowering that entry point essentially. And honestly, I mean, when you do achieve that dream one day, you can just move everything over to this lovely big garden as well, because it works both ways, you know? Yeah, definitely. And I think the versatility and accessibility and customizability, I guess, if you're going to use a bunch of words, they are the kind of starting points for it for us. We really wanted it to be No matter what situation you're in, you can add a little something, even if you've got a lower end for the budget, you've maybe got a kind of older set. Maybe this year you can't replace it, but you could add a few cushions to it just to give it a little bit of a refresh for the summer. Love that. The first one was Kidult. What's the next one? Yes. Well, actually quite similar to moments of joy, but with another kind of pop of colour going into playful nostalgia. And I would say this kind of goes hand in hand with the idea of reminiscing on, you know, hot summer days during the school holidays. I associate this one with a lot of like sporty kind of imagery. So like if you had like a little sports camp that you went to during the summer. Yeah, it's very 70s inspired as well. Yeah, definitely. If you're thinking of in fashion, at least the rise of kind of tennis core the last few years, it's quite nostalgic and they use a lot of color schemes that are kind of like old school sports team colors, things like that. So that did come into play with us as well as kind of a revisit of some old Scandi designs. we were quite inspired by IKEA revisiting their back catalog from the 70s. They released a lot of their old chairs that have a lot of that really punchy strong green oranges. They really, really go for bright colors that work together. And it is, it's seventies, but new. Yeah. Yeah. That Ikea exhibition was amazing, wasn't it? Absolutely incredible to see all those archive pieces and also how apt this is for Wimbledon coming up as well. Exactly. Yeah. I love it. And the green and the white is obviously a big part of all of that. And then the orange comes into play, you've got the kind of clay ports as well. So we've covered all bases there. But yeah, I think it's brilliant for summer because that is a colour scheme. people associate with summer because of Wimbledon pretty much. And I totally agree with you, IKEA's kind of heritage is amazing and I loved seeing all the pieces that they exhibit. There's a lot of really bold, the green and the orange in particular I think is something I've seen a lot of. I've seen people say that orange and green should always be seen this year so we were really happy that the orange and green is working very nicely together and we included a nice soft blue that's kind of reminiscent of the summer skies as well. That softens it and makes it not such a big contrast that it's just gonna punch you in the face when you walk into your garden. As you're just listing those colors, I'm very much really, but I am surrounded by this right now. I just get away. But it's like the orange and green, I was like, oh yeah. And the sun was like, yeah. It's white, mean, my t-shirt, I am this theme today. haven't been to plan this. Just squeamish. Choose your favourite theme and dress up as it. Well, that's brilliant. Well, I'm not biased at all, but I also have the orange and green scheme in my living room. it works. I'm going to live and die by that saying now. I love that orange and green should always be seen because you're right. It's not something that you would normally maybe pair together because actually when you think about a colour wheel, they're kind of opposite each other, aren't they? Yeah, exactly. But that's what they say is and like those colors are the complementary colors. They do complement each other well. Make each other pop. Yeah. So moving on, to kind of go with a key trend that we were seeing in 2025, we're seeing grey being pushed out in favor of, you know, kind of coffee neutrals. And of course, we've got Pantone Color of the Year, Mokka Moose. which is a kind of lovely mid-tone brown color, kind of muted. It's kind of like understated luxury almost. And that's exactly what the Coffee Naturals theme is all about. It's all about embracing subtlety and kind of got a little Mediterranean vibe to it. It's lovely. Yeah. The inspiration was kind of sitting in a wee Italian cafe, having a wee espresso. The sun is out and it's just a beautiful range of kind of browns and creams and it's soft, but it makes you feel like you're on holiday. Yeah. It's like a quiet sophistication. Yeah. This is definitely one of my favorites and it really reminds me of them, you know, like. all those fantastic locations that they film in and like on the program White Lotus and that can just be up by the pool with these beautiful Italians by an umbrella's like very very much you can channel those vibes in your garden with this theme. that's idea and I'm a big fan of Brohm personally, I'm representing that today but yeah we really wanted to capture that feel of being on holiday and just getting that summer heat, but in a more subtle way than using kind of just bright colors. To me, I really associate this theme with food as well, because it's got that kind of the gelato, chocolate, vanilla cream, and then coffee, espresso. So it's just kind of like delicious. It reminds me of summer. Very affogato. All those affogato. Yes. Mug. fields that are going round at the moment. It's all over the high street now, isn't it? Browns. And I think like Browns used to be a bit of a dirty word. someone said, you're going to, I'm going to paint it brown. You'd be like, yeah, why would you be doing that? Why would you choose brown one? You'd be thinking, oh, it's dirty and it's old, but actually Brown is really quite, as you say, sophisticated and lux. And I think it's like, you've definitely seen it in the high street more and more and more. Brown is kind of almost like the new black. It's actually really like, like chic to wear and you feel quite like people look really sophisticated in it. And also I think it's kind of come from that sort of skims and things like that, like all those sort of neutral tones and things like that. It feels like that's really filtered through. Yeah, aha, definitely. And particularly in garden furniture as well, obviously you've got a lot of great metal sets out right now. But more and more we're starting to see that kind of fade away in favor of top. and kind of more natural colors and because it's so much more grounding and I would say more relaxing. Yeah, looks softer. Yeah, because the grey can get quite industrial at times. I mean, you'll notice that we don't have any in the outdoor edit at all because we're always steer away from it. I think that's great to see a brand that's really like getting behind color and getting behind interior, bringing to interior outside because there is a lot of brands out there, especially in the garden furniture world that just are quite samey. Am I allowed to say that? They obviously have a really great handwriting and really great kind of unique branding and they know their customer base and they're quite loyal. But it's just nice to see someone doing it a bit differently and a bit bolder and a bit sort of like, you know, people are so much more okay with color now rather than you know, like you say, the grays and the, and the dolls. So yeah, you guys are really making a splash out there. I mean, it's really nice to hear that. And we have had a really good response from people because some of the colors we've gone for are a bit risky and you don't know until people see them and we get feedback. But even things like the really bright pink, probably the one that I thought was the scariest to start with is probably one of my favorites once I saw it person and people really responded well to it. Yeah. Yeah, okay. So moving on to the next one. You said splash earlier, Lindsay, and it's quite a good segue. Because seeing sky is all about creating this lovely... Oh, I like what you did there, Claire. That's great. Yeah, so we're watching with seeing sky, we've got loads of blues, of sandy neutrals, etc. And it's all about creating this lovely kind of coastal, oasis feel in your garden. Yeah, this one's about wellness and just kind of creating a little retreat for yourself. So compared to some of the other things we've got, it's a lot less bold, but it still has some color. It's got some wavy motifs. There's something really nice and summary about it still, but it's probably the one that would match what a lot of people have already in the garden. So while we don't have grays, if you have a gray set, this one will probably go really nicely with it. but it's all about just a range of blues, neutrals, and it can tie in with the other themes as well. Like this would go really nicely with the copy naturals and the playful nostalgia. we've actually used the same, something you'll notice is that because we believe in, you know, making things versatile for the customer and having them being able to customize. So going between themes. We have actually used the same seat pads on this bistro set as we have on the Play from La Salle one, just because it goes so well. And it does encourage people, you know, crossing over their themes, et cetera, kind of making things their own, which is the most important thing about this. think that's what's so lovely about all your themes, because you can actually make new themes from, you know, the bits and Exactly. But if you've got a bit of an eye for it, obviously it's really great that you guys have given the customers that that struggle with that, that the ideas, but actually there's lots of different things that you can mould together, can't you, if you've got a particular style? Yeah, we really wanted to be able to let people curate their own space because as you say, some people might have their own idea, they might have a colour scheme inside and they can replicate it almost with what we have across our themes. But we also have these just pre-selected things curated by us of what we think. I appreciate that coming from brands myself because as much as we come up with all these themes, as soon as there's your own space, it's much harder, I think. So I can say we kind of designed all these themes. Yeah, but honestly, I would trust the designer over myself when it comes to other brands. You are a designer. Yeah, it's just when it's much more personal, it's nice to have recommendations to go off. Yeah, sweet. And yeah, and then kind of going off of that, and kind of more into the more classic and contemporary thing. say this is quite, I kind of pair this with sea and sky quite often, because I feel like these two are the most commercial themes. And country garden, where you've got more olives and sages. And I would say this kind of goes hand in hand with a lot of things that you do see in garden centers quite frequently. And we're thinking lovely, if you want to go on the imagery route, you know, Heather Meadows. and you know this lovely little garden sanctuary and I can just imagine people just sipping a little tea reading a nice wee book and a lovely little kind of like fairy garden look in this kind of thing. This was all kind of greens, soft lilacs, vanilla colours, it is a bit more neutral in a way but I wouldn't consider it boring because I feel like that sage green and olive green has been so massive. it's going to become a new core colour in itself. And I just think it works pretty well in any space. But particularly this one would appeal to people who like the kind of cottage core vibe. or farmhouse aesthetic as well. Farmhouse tartan is literally one of the cushions that we have there. yeah, it's a lovely theme, honestly. It's really nice and simple and not too exciting. But like you said, obviously not boring either. Green is just not going away, is it? It's been here for some time now, but like you say, it's one of those staple colours. I mean, I've got so much green in my wardrobe. is, you know, like a green vest. Yeah, no, it just lends itself so well to being like a nice metal colour as well, doesn't it? That kind of olivey green. Yeah, it's kind of almost, it's almost like a grey sometimes. It's like a greeny grey. It softens it, makes it more interesting and it goes with more things. But it's not too crazy, it's not too daring. You won't go off it next year. You won't be sick of it. I have been seeing a lot of places have been calling Sage the new neutral. Yeah. I really, I really love it. But like you were saying earlier about the kind of browns coming from skims, I see that these greens are also coming from things. like kind of sportswear brands and their kind of leggings and core ranges and everyone's all about in them. So I think it's just what people are seeing and then it's filtering through into the home as well. They become more more comfortable with it. Yes. Yeah. This is, this is definitely one that I would say really appeals to people that I know that never really went for colour before. Like my mum, we always be very like neutrals. She didn't want to pick bold colours, but now she owns everything in sage green. I was just saying the other day that I used to be, I would always have too many grey jumpers. I'd be like, oh, another grey jumper. And now it's that with green jumpers. have far too many green jumpers. Green is my new grey. Do you know what? It's a gateway colour. That's what I like to think about. Yes. Yeah, that's a really good point. we should use that. Yeah, and then lastly, we have Dark Bouquet, which is quite similar in that it does have lot of floral and kind of sort of plant imagery, but we went with a much more mysterious, deep, dark tone with it. Lots of dual tones, like really deep forest greens and kind of wine reds as well. And this is a big favorite, particularly in the parasol for this range. And we've been getting a lot of good feedback on this. And we've got lovely wildflower patterns scattered across the parasol and the cushion. And yeah, it's just, it's lovely this theme. I think it's brilliant. Yeah. I like this one because it feels quite trans-seasonal because it's got the darker palette. and if you're thinking into it when it's getting a little bit darker, and you maybe want to spend more time in the evening out in your garden. I think these deep dark greens and the florals are just a bit dark and moody, romantic. And that obviously kind of burgundy colour has been massive in fashion. And we're seeing that start to come through into interiors already. I just think it's really strong that cherry red and like Claire said, the kind dual tones of emerald and ruby. We're seeing a lot of that coming through. Yeah, that definitely transitions very nicely into the winter, doesn't it? Or into the autumn, winter kind of. You can see like a Christmas theme emerging from it as well. of, know, the jute tones. I really love the kind of deep dark colours. just, they really appeal to me. And I think that probably would work so well in a more kind of contemporary garden space. Especially the floral patterns are less twee and a bit more kind of bold and geometric. They're really punchy. And the bistro set itself is a really, really dark colour and it goes with all the bright cushions and bright accessories really well. Fantastic. Brilliant. Wow. You've got something for everyone there, really, haven't you? Yeah, I know. That's the idea, to be honest. We made this insane mood board that we've whittled down and whittled down and we've worked from it all year and it really underpins everything we worked on. And we refined all the themes and they really clearly delineated themselves. based on trends we were seeing and colors we liked and things that spoke to us. And it did separate really naturally and came across as a bunch of different themes that would appeal to a really wide customer base. And of course, this is our first year doing this as well. So it's important for us to keep it broad for now and potentially we'll whittle it down in the future. But this is a really good way to see, for us to see what works with the people that we are marketing to essentially. Yeah, absolutely. You're sort of going on a journey with it, aren't you? And talking of that, can you talk us through the whole design process then? So how does it all get started and how do you get from sort of paper to production? Yeah. So, I mean, first off, me and Caitlin, we designed the brand itself, the Outdoor Edit, you we created the logo. It was all about, know, typeface, brand colouring as well, all that jazz. It was really fun to be honest. This is something that we haven't really done much in the past. So this was a new hat, quite fun. But obviously, and then like you just said, we created this huge, big research mood board and had a really collaborative design process experience pretty much. So starting from, like I said, we attend loads of design shows, starting from our qualitative research and quantitative and gathering that all into one. place that we can just derive all of our information from. Yeah. And what was good about us doing the kind of brand and themes and the products all at once is that we could really link them together and make sure they make sense. So the branding linked with the products linked with themes. And then we built the kind of website from there, how we wanted that to look and everything. So everything is fitting into the design that we wanted and the market that we wanted to kind of go for. So we designed the branding based on how the products would end up looking. Yeah. So that it would all make sense. Yeah. then of course, we actually went and visited the factories that produced all of our products as well. So that obviously meant that we were building up a really good relationship with them. Because what is so important is that when you have so many different products, you know, we have loads of different materials. We have our fabrics and wood foils. have our metal like powder coating, et cetera. And because of these difference in materials, we have to have everything to be consistent, particularly with color. And if we have patterns across different ranges, we need them to look the same. And so obviously having a good relationship with our suppliers meant that, you know, that was achievable, which is obviously really important for us, this brand. Yeah, and it's something that's really not easy. And I think it just needs that kind of time and the in-person face-to-face conversations just to make sure that everyone is on the same page and we can see them all in person. And it's just something we cannot do digitally, to be honest. We found like it was really hard to do over video calls or over photos because there's such a color difference. So that relationship where you can just go and see the products and see the samples is really important to us. And then from there we would kind of make refinements, make sure we were happy with everything. And we also designed all the packaging. to everything, we had the unboxing experience. So you would go from seeing the products for the first time, purchasing them, receiving them. And we designed every single part of the process, including how it looked once you unpacked it put it in the garden. That's down to like instructions as well. I mean, they're on the website as well, which conveniently brings me onto the website. You know, because obviously that's your point of sale, isn't it? That's where the customer is going to see everything for the first time, gets to learn the brand and a really key step in the customer journey. Granted, it has come last in the design process. I think that's, you know, that's how it should have been, to be honest, because we have everything curated and then we build around the products from that. We build around our range from that. Everything just sits very nicely with each other and there's nothing disjoint about this design process to the end, to the consumer. That's fantastic. And were you inspired by any sort of brands when you were sort of thinking about your branding and the journey on the website? There are a few that we really liked actually. So one of them was Lick, the paint company, because we really love the way they do their color palettes, the way they do their branding and their social media. It's just really nice. And they kind of do a 2025 edit of their paints and the colors that they see that will be trending. And I just think it was really nice and they were quite disruptive in the paint market. And I really love their stuff. I used it on my own flat. But their brand identity is really great and we really liked how fun we were with it when paint companies are quite traditional. That's almost kind of like what you guys are doing with your brand, isn't it? As well, you're being less traditional, like the less traditional outdoor furniture company, like sort of going a bit bolder with it. Yeah, exactly. That's really what we wanted to do. and just have a bit of fun as well. You know, we wanted to have a kind of lighthearted tone, but still have good products that appeal to people, which I think is something that people like, like that really well. There's also, yeah, Mustard May is one that we really love because their brand is fun and colorful and they've got quite a limited product selection, but they only introduce products when it makes sense and they only introduce colors when they make sense. And I really like their approach and how personal they are. Yeah, definitely. One brand that I particularly loved the presentation of was when I went down to the Ideal Home Show, Lara Doop had their, I think they had the bedroom in the dream home. And it was just decorated with loads of lovely like squiggle mirrors and geometric cushions, like lovely clashing, clashing, they're complimentary, but lots of contrast and colors. and textures as well. It was just all lovely. And I think that that in itself is, you know, what the outdoor edit is doing as well. That's what we would like to do. Yeah, so you could achieve the same sort of thing, but for your garden, pretty much. I really like their stuff recently. feel like they're definitely taking a really considered approach to how all the products match together. And that kind of eclectic mix of colors and textures is another big key trend that we've seen a lot of. Eclectic is the key word. Love that. So in terms of obviously, there's a lot of talk around garden furniture being very difficult to sort of give through a sustainability message. It's quite hard to upkeep on quality. What's the sort of messages that the outdoor editor are putting out there on these sort of topics and how are your products going to be lasting the the test of time. Yeah. Yeah, that's one thing that we did look a lot at because we didn't want people to be able to just buy it one summer and replace it the next. That wasn't the idea behind it. So on the kind of first point about quality, for example, on the Bistro set, that's got a kind of rust resistant coating, then it's got powder coating, and it's made of durable high quality steel. So the idea is that you can leave that outside. and it'll be fine. You don't need to worry about it. It'll last years. And then also we really thought about the parasols in particular because they have a real, they take the brunt of the sun, to be honest. So we up-spec the fabric to a heavier fabric. It's got a UV resistant coating just to make sure the colors really stayed punchy because compared to a lot of parasols out there, it is even more important for ours. Yes, more important than the brand. Getting that pink to stay pink is a big challenge. We really wanted to make sure that that didn't fade away and that it wouldn't match with your beach or set and then it wouldn't match with cushions. So that was really important. Same story on the cushions. We made those like really big and generous. They're UV resistant and shower proof. So they'll be able to stay like outside if there's a little shower. So you don't need to be too worried. So little things like that we thought about. then even the lighting, the lighting is dirt and water resistant. So you can have that outside and not need to worry after a shower. And to be honest, that does play into sustainability for us as well. Because if you're not having to replace it, like the thing is the most sustainable item is the one you have. I mean, it's all about longevity, isn't it? Obviously, it's been like five years since COVID and now people are starting to think about replacing what they have. But at the same time, we want to have products that potentially last even longer than that. And so things about quality in terms of performance was quite a big one. And you'd mentioned the lighting and if kept on a dim light, that mushroom light that we do. will work up to 72 hours. Yeah, but mostly with traditional use, I would say the lights are eight hours, it can be used all night. And the fire pit as well. And that's a huge one for sustainability. And it doesn't use any sort of gas, etc. It is solely powered by lighting wood pellets. so, yeah, and it's also it's a smokeless fire pit as well. So you shouldn't be annoying anyone. But yeah, one of the things that we also thought about a lot was the kind of quality of the design across everything. We talked earlier about getting the color consistent, making sure that when everything arrived, it all worked together. So that was something that was really important that everyone, the customer was really happy once they received the product. And the things that you feel is curated to you, the things you feel close to are the things that you keep. We wanted to get that kind of sentiment in it as well. And then things like the packaging, we... to protect the Bistro sets in particular, because they're probably one of the heaviest things that we have. We've eradicated the use of polystyrene in the boxes. It's all just cardboard protection in there. And we've taken steps to remove plastic where possible. There's, it's all, and it's all cardboard packaging. don't have any kind of plastic packaging on most of the products. We will say there's some where it's... impossible to eliminate it right now. But that's something we're really looking at for 26. And we have been saying that progress is better than perfect. That's one of our kind of models going forward. Perfection is what we'd like to strive for. But we're year one and we want to take steps towards it for you too. Yeah, because you obviously still have to think about, you know, the journey of the product from your warehouse to the customer, protecting it, all that kind of stuff. So that's really important as well, isn't it? Because, if a product arrives damaged, then it's just going to get thrown away. So it's just like thinking about all those different places. I think it's very difficult in the product type that you're carrying. know, it's, yeah, I love that saying now. think that's really important. A lot of businesses should take that on, you know, rather than being afraid, small steps, just take some small steps to try and improve things. I think it can make a massive difference as well when you're talking about kind of shipping products, even those small little changes can make a massive impact. And it's not something to kind of sneeze at. It's better to make that change than just say, oh, well, we can't do everything perfectly. Let's cancel the whole thing. We found that really important. And like you say, it's finding that balance of making the products accessible, affordable, while still taking steps to make them more sustainable. So it's a balancing point because we do need to make sure they're protected, like you say, but we also want to eliminate as much as we can. And as of recently, I mean, I know that this is a huge rising trend right now is that customers and you know what the public in general, to be honest, are really striving for underdogs right now. So people love a good backstory or progress story. And as we grow as a business and as we start to make these changes, I feel like people would love to follow along with that. It's a real success story, hopefully. And yeah, so if, for example, we were upgrading packaging, et cetera, seeing those small changes, I'm sure it would make a lot of people really happy, to be honest. That's something I really appreciate about Mustard Made, actually, because they're very honest in their approach, that there's still some plastic in their packaging, but they're taking steps to change it and make it better. I do like seeing updates and reading about them. So I do agree with what you're saying that a lot of people are happier supporting a range of smaller brands rather than just buying everything from one big brand in a lot of cases. Yeah, exactly. No, that's fantastic. So do you want to tell us about some of successes that you've been having this season? Like what kind of coverage have you been getting out there? Obviously you're making some bold statements. So what's been going on? I yeah, I'll let you talk about the press event since you were the one that attended. Yeah, so I'd say one of our biggest things really early on, this was back in February, we went to the Garden press event and it's something that we kind of started this whole process later last year in about October. So the press event in February was a real goal, a real challenge for us. We wanted to get everything ready, everything ready to show people to launch this summer. Garden Press event was really the first event of the season that we had the opportunity to do that. And it was the first time that we got real feedback from people. It was amazing. So validating. People responded so well. They were really excited to see the products. They came and actually got their hands on it, got a feel for it. And there were a lot of kind of journalists present, a lot of influencers present. And it was really nice. We made some great contacts. And to be honest, a lot of the kind of leads that we got from that were really beneficial. And it gave us a bit of like a kickstart. I really enjoyed it and Claire later in the year went to the Ideal Home Show because some of her products were featured down at Olympia and that all stemmed from that Garden Press event because we met people from the Ideal Home Show there. Yeah, exactly. So it was a little collaboration that we did with Lynne Lambourn. She was the one that you guys had met at the press event and she was doing up the Dream Garden that was in the Dream Home at the Ideal Home Show. Lots of words there that are similar. And essentially we had like It was the playful nostalgia theme mostly that was there. So that lovely striped parasol with the of the frilly frim on it was kind of littered about. There was a huge big bright pink pickleball court that it contrasted with really nicely. So we actually saw quite a few pictures of it there. And because of this as well, you had a lot of press coverage, people going around just kind of showing off what this dream home was. And so our products did end up on this morning, sort of in the background, which was really nice to see. had a lot of and family. I know lots of friends and family were kind of watching at this point. And so we were getting messages like, is that not your stuff? So yeah, it was really sweet. And I obviously went down and got to see it. So I got in talking to a couple of people about it and people seemed really interested. yeah, it was. fun to be honest. It was a lovely thing to be a part of as well because you had so many big names and were you had like Sophology I know that were doing quite a lot of the soft accessories. Lara Doot like I'd mentioned and loads of other people as well and just to get to be a part of that was really cool. It's so nice to see how nice you sit with all those brands as well you know sort of like a century. It was really validating to be fair, because obviously we're kind of sitting designing it all, looking to kind of make sure that it's what will appeal to people next summer, which is something quite hard. And it's hard to know whether it'll work until that next summer arrives. And then you see stripes everywhere and you see green and pink everywhere. So the green and pink was so strong this year, which I loved. I thought it was really, really powerful. they kind of based their green and pink theme bag at the home show on Beverly Hills Hotel vibe. And it was really, really nice and really summery. I loved it. And then this weekend passed actually as well. had a little, not quite stand, but we dressed up the speaker's tent at the Schoon Palace Garden Fair. Yeah, we had some of our team go up and see that. And it was a lovely It was quite sunny actually from the footage to be honest. It hasn't been down here, but it looked lovely, honestly. We've got a little bit of coverage from that as well. That was really fun. And of course, we've had quite a lot of competitions as well. Yeah, we had a couple of really great competitions and we were giving away a couple of our themed packages and we had an amazing response from that, which was really exciting to see. Oh, brilliant. Fantastic. So what's next for the Outdoor Reddit and what kind of... What kind of new trends have you guys been seeing out there? Because I know you've been out and about all the various different trade shows, trend shows all over Europe, really. Yeah. Yeah. So it's actually been brilliant. In a lot of ways, we were looking ahead a little bit with the themes we did this year because we wanted them to last through 2025 and beyond. We didn't want them to be too transient and just disappear next year. So we wanted those kind of longer term trends that you can add on to and build from. So what we were looking at doing next is our kind of 20-26 themes. So they'll be upcoming. Some of them will add in some new things and some of them will just be building on trends this year that we'll still be seeing next year. A couple of things that I've seen a lot of. in Milan in particular was this dark red, the burgundy, it was everywhere and it's so beautiful. In a similar way that people, a lot of people bought those big emerald green sofas and that dark green was everywhere for a while. That's how the dark red is looking to become. Great for a dark bouquet, to be honest. Yeah, and to be honest, to piggyback off of that as well, when I was down at Clark and Well a few weeks ago as well, The deep reds were there as well. Ethymol had a lovely sort of set up, a little parasol and a kind of little rope bistro set up going and it was just lovely. And it really stood out against all of the, because a lot of what Ethymol has is very natural, very white wood, et cetera. So it was just, it was a lovely big standout for that. Yeah. And we were also looking at adding perhaps some new product categories. So That's a lot of under wraps for just now, but definitely one that's in the pipeline. But I think that'll be an exciting one for 26, 27. And also, like I said, some more progress on sustainability improvements. We really want to eliminate any plastics as much as possible and just try and make sure we've got the best protection and the best sustainability in our packaging. We need to find that balance. One thing actually I did want to mention is we have been seeing loads and loads of the kind of metallic finishes. So rather than just having the kind of matte painted finishes, that silver and chrome are everywhere. I think that really ties into the nostalgic IKEA revisits because they had a lot of of chrome frames that matched with that really punchy green. And it just looks really cool and really it's a way of bringing in that industrial story without being too cold and too grey and boring. Yeah, because everything's been quite matte. for a while, hasn't it, in terms of like, hardware finishes? Yeah, definitely. And we're seeing even things like that cherry red, it's on like a really shiny lacquer and it's almost like wet, it's like a liquid. We've seen a lot of that on tables, it just looks really cool. And on lighting as well. Yeah. Oh, brilliant. We'll watch this for next year. I know we're going to be exploring that for a bit, I feel. Yeah. And then obviously we're a small business and we want to grow. So looking at new opportunities is always going to be on the cards to be honest. So yeah, that will be another watch this space, I would say. Fantastic. Brilliant. So we always do a bit of a, what do call it Kate, retail, retail therapy segment. Oh yes. That we ask a lot of our guests, brands that we interview, have there been any sort of... Like really funny moments or something you want to get off your chest in this whole process that you've that you've been through to launch the brand. there there been any hilarious stories that you can spill the tea on? Well, yeah, to be honest, it's been like I said, we started this whole process pretty much from October. We had an idea of all the colours and themes and things, but actually getting to see the samples getting everything ready was around then. So of course, the launch this year we had to do an outdoor photo shoot in beautiful sunshine, which in Scotland that's bit difficult. So we did an outdoor photo shoot in January in Edinburgh and Glasgow. to be honest, it didn't even get light until at least half nine in the morning. And then it was already getting dark by four p.m. So the window to do this photo shoot was tiny. And then when we turned up, it was all frosty, like all the trees were white and the grass was white. So we had to chase as the sun moved and melted the frost, we had to chase the sun around and have people drying off the blades of grass and wiping frost off the of grass. had a moment where it rained as well. That was fun. So we had to collect everything, bring it inside and chill for like half an hour until it finished. And then obviously go back out with whatever equipment that we had to dry off patio space. So it was quite meticulous to be honest, but to be honest, I think we did a brilliant job with it. I don't think you'd be able to tell. Yeah, in the background of some of those sunny shots are people with bath sheets drying the ground. It's funny, you don't really think about what goes on behind the scenes of commercial photographs, to be honest, or product photos. You don't really think about it as such. I can tell you exactly what I would have been doing behind every single picture. I can just imagine you standing there with a hairdryer trying to melt snow or something. It was close to that. It was close to that. And then we had to try and identify like all those plants are looking a bit wintery. We can't take the photo there. And then we just had to wait for any little ray of sun to get a lovely kind of summer shot. And we were were so lucky for a January. Edinburgh that we could actually keep a parasol standing up. Oh yeah, because it was fairly windy as well. Yeah, oh my goodness. So battling Scottish weather. Sometimes you can get some really lovely days in the, like late, later into the year and really early in the year. It's actually quite hard as an outdoor business to keep up with the seasons these days because they're so different, aren't they? Yeah, and you know, right now we're at the start of June and we could not do a photo shoot now because the weather is the weather is miserable. We were supposed to do breakfast the other day. I know it was brilliant in May. It was so sunny and lovely in May. I don't know where it went. Well, hopefully it's still, it's still to play for. I'm pretty sure. I mean, you know, what summer lasts till what end of October these days. We might get lucky, might get a little Indian summer for our next photoshoot for 26. Yeah, fingers crossed. Brilliant. Well, thanks so much for coming on guys. I think it's been really like sort of people have been hanging off every word that you've been saying. It's so nice to hear about how, you know, much work goes into your brand, thinking about those themes, thinking about the trends, like really thinking about how people are living. you know, what an amazing start and I'm sure lots of our listeners will be following your journey and they can check out all of your products on your website, which we will put in the show notes. Yeah, thank you. And thank you so much. It's been lovely speaking to you as well. Brilliant. Thank you so much. Speak to you soon. Thank you. If you're a product based business, whether it's home or accessories, plant pots or jewelry, or any other product for that matter. as we have experience in over 35 product categories. Then you might be interested to know that we have created a retail-ready bootcamp just for you. Are you ready to land in retail stores, scour with confidence, or finally understand what buyers really want? We've created a six-week intensive programme built for businesses and brands like yours designed by us, two former head of buyings with over 30 years of combined experience in retail. Each week we'll run a live one hour session covering everything you need to become retail ready. We'll cover topics such as how to refine your offer to meet buyers' expectations, nailing your pricing for profit, finding the right stockists, building your go-to-market and trade strategy, leveraging relationships to grow, and how to manage orders, stock and retail partnerships like a pro, and so much more. You'll also get a one-to-one session with us for tailored brand feedback, our retail readiness toolkit to take away with you, and access to a WhatsApp group for community, collaboration, and accountability. We don't just teach, we open up the floor each session for honest, collaborative discussions with other ambitious businesses. So if you're tired of guessing what buyers want, this is the time to find out. Head to www. Buyingandbeyond.co.uk forward slash bootcamp to join. See you there. If you've enjoyed listening to this episode, please, please, please like and subscribe and leave a review. And if you already have, thank you, thank you, thank you. We all need a bit of retail therapy and this is the perfect time for you to offload about that super cringe-worthy story. We would love to hear from you all, your funny stories and experiences or even any dilemmas and maybe we can help or at least find someone who can. And don't worry, we will keep these anonymous and remove any names and brands. We would also love to hear from you on any topics you would like us to talk about. Please send all of these into buyingandbeyond at gmail.com or drop us a DM via our Instagram page at BuyingAndBeyond. Kate, are you a drama queen? No. Drama just makes things interesting. That's true. All these thoughts and opinions are our own and based on our own experiences working for a wide variety of retailers. These are all in the hope to entertain and educate and not to reflect negatively on any place we currently or have previously worked.