Leona Thrift-ola is a name synonymous with cool, crafty design. After launching her first online business Lady Luck Rules OK in 2003, stocking trinkets and hand-lovingly made jewellery for those with a penchant for the alternative (LLROK is responsible for the original dangly plectrum earrings), East London-based Leona has gone on to run numerous exciting endeavours. Anyone local to London’s bustling Brick Lane will have no doubt visited indie boutique Superette, and vintage treasure hunters will have surely scoured online vintage store Thrift-ola.
Leona’s latest project is inspired by the excitement of lucky dips, combined with the joy of receiving something through the post that isn’t a – an electricity bill, or b – a takeaway leaflet. Lucky Dip Club is a subscription box for lovers of all things handmade, personalised presents and surprises. After a hugely successful run of themed boxes, from Lucky Dip Diner to the latest, Birds of Paradise, Leona has added a new edge to the project, collaborating with other like-minded creatives to offer something totally unique and Instagram-able. It certainly seems to be a winning formula, as boxes now sell out within a matter of hours.
We caught up with the lovely Leona about her inspiration, her love of crafting and what she’s got lined up for the future…
Tell us about your typical working day
I recently moved the business out of my living room and into its own studio which is a 10 minute walk from my flat and based in Hackney’s old town hall. I’m an early morning person so I’m usually at my desk by 8am eating Lucky Charms, answering emails and shooting the first Instagram shot of the day. My studio has lovely large windows and the morning light is perfect for taking photographs for social media. My days are then a mix of making products, planning future boxes, meetings with collaborators and trying to do an inspiration field trip once a week which could involve going to a flea market or an exhibition. If it’s crazy pack-a-thon week, however, which happens once a month then it’s all about packing the boxes fuelled by donuts, coffee and loud music!
February's boxes
Where do you get your inspiration?
If I sit at my computer for too long my brain freezes so I like to get out and about to see and experience all the fun things happening in my city, even if it’s just grabbing a coffee in the cat cafe or going for a walk in the park. Although I mainly find inspiration from thrifted objects and I like to scour car boot sales, charity shops and flea markets and any kind of weird and wonderful find could spark off an idea. Yesterday I thrifted a pair of neon pink retro roller boots and a holographic candle and I came back to the studio and scribbled a whole new theme for a future box.
Leona's desk
What first attracted you to crafting?
When I moved to London in the late 90s I worked as an assistant to a music stylist and we would customise clothes and make accessories to ensure our artists looked unique. From this I started selling my customised vintage finds at Portobello market to make a bit of extra money as I was working a lot for free to get experience and it really took off. At the time the high street was really awful so I mainly wanted to create stuff that I wanted to wear and didn’t exist in the shops like unicorn and lightning bolt necklaces. We have so much more choice these days from independent makers and a high street that has totally upped it’s game but I still manage to magic up goodies, which feel fun, and different – that’s really important to me.
Lucky Dip Diner
How did you go about starting your own business?
With my first business it was all very organic and I just kind of stumbled into it but with Lucky Dip Club it has been precisely planned from the very beginning. I had the idea last summer so I researched the world of subscription boxes, wrote a business plan, attended small business seminars and social media workshops and applied for funding and a small business loan to get started. I planned to launch in May 2014 with 100 boxes and to grow by 50 boxes per month – I ended up growing by 100 boxes per month because they were selling out so fast and in March I made the jump to 1,000 subscribers which initially was my goal for 18 months down the line. It’s definitely an exciting time!
Where did the inspiration for Lucky Dip Club come from?
Whilst I was working as Head of Marketing for a vintage company I wanted to start my own business again so I thought about which products had been the most successful from previous projects and the colour themed lucky dip bags I produced for my jewellery business had been a massive hit. I was also really interested in the growing trend for subscription boxes in the beauty and craft industries in the US. So I simply combined the nostalgic and exciting world of the lucky dip with a subscription box model to create Lucky Dip Club.
December's boxes
What's on your playlist?
It depends what I’m doing in the studio… I love a good sing-a-long to Jefferson Airplane, Patti Smith or the Ramones whilst I’m making products or packing boxes. If it’s a low-key morning then Radio 6 Music provides the tunes, especially Lauren Laverne’s show, I love how she throws in an old skool rave tune every now and again.
What is your advice for anyone looking to start their own creative business?
If you’ve got an idea that gives you butterflies or a talent to create a product that’s financially viable with a specific market then go for it. Plan, research, know everything in your world inside out, do the maths and don’t forget to tell everyone about it – social media is great for this, we’re lucky to have such an ace marketing tool at our disposal that’s free and fun to use.
What are your future plans, for Lucky Dip Club and elsewhere?
There are lots of fun projects in the pipeline with exciting people and personally I’m hoping to travel a bit next year so I’m currently brainstorming events I can take on the road!
Dream Big & Enjoy Today
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