17/12/2021
Unfortunately this year hasn’t been our best and we will be shutting Porkie’s
We prefer the term on pause as we would love to find our mojo and enjoyment for sewing things again. But Instagram and the handmade market has been a tough old challenge that we never expected!
We have loved creating clothing for your families, seeing the wonderful designs being worn especially when some had such meaning to the both of us.
But we have also experienced the tough and not so friendly side of running a small business. The pandemic really shook the whole market and ironically we only opened 2 months before the first lockdown!
It’s been a struggle since opening and we started making headway this time last year but 2021 was horrific for so many small shops! Sales are down, interactions are down and it made a really tough environment to stay positive.
Instagram isn’t the warm and friendly place it’s billed as that’s for sure, it’s a very mixed bag. We have met some amazing people & businesses on here but also seen the worst Instagram has to offer.
We are forever grateful for the experience and learning curve and they always do say you aren’t a real business until someone hates you 😉😂
We started Porkie’s so everyone could get to know the face behind the brand - Yorkie and some have embraced it open heartedly, this is something that means the world to us both. Knowing he was on the logo and labels every time you ordered made us both so proud.
Sadly sales are not happening like a business needs so we have to be practical and shut Porkie’s. It’s a shame because we honestly believe our quality and prints are pretty unique, we are thankful for the to those who took a gamble and tried our products! Especially those who constantly supported us through this journey.
But being realistic we have found most shoppers stick with brands they already know which is brilliant for that business but doesn’t allow many others to flourish! We hoped to make this a thriving business and the climate at the moment is telling us it’s time to close and reevaluate what we want to do.
I don’t think words can really explain how saddened we are to be closing but we are so grateful to have met a few amazing people, children & pets along the way who without Porkie’s we would never have known!
Thank you for supporting us - a closing down sale will be organised soon, we would love people to try us before we close as we still have a huge amount of fabric that needs using up.
Ryan + Sophie
🖤🐾
