Enterprise Nation

Having twins quite simply changed the lives of Nigel & Catherine Sanders, and for the better. They now have two beautiful children and a growing business. All three are taken care of from the comfort of home!

After he made contact to let us know about the business, I wrote back to Nigel (who signs off as ‘Director and Dad to Joe and Isobel’) to say I’d like to know a little more. This was his response.

“Hi Emma

Yes would love to talk more, and do a feature.

We’ve been trading for 2 or 3 years now and work around our twins – the website gives us the flexibility to work evenings and not be tied to a till. When you call, you may experience some toddler screams in the background, but I’m sure you’ve heard worse.”

I braved it. And this is what I learned.

What were you and Catherine doing before starting Twins Store?

I was a Sales Manager for a large French company which manufactured tyres, and Catherine worked full time as a Marketing Manager for an IT Consultancy. When the twins came a long I wanted to be more involved in looking after them so decided to become a full time stay at home dad…….I loved every minute, but felt I needed to find a new direction in my career path.

Did you both start full-time at the same time, or did one person build up the business, before the other one joined?

We very lucky as we were able to research the market in our spare time around the kids. We both started part time with Catherine, mostly in the evenings and weekends. In the past year I’ve gone full time - not a typical 9 to 5 - more as and when I can. I work mostly in the evenings but I’m never too far away from the phone or emails.

Do you have a dedicated home office from which you work?

We used our spare bedroom to start, it’s amazing really to think with a desk and a phone line you can be selling around the world and competing against the major players in our industry. We soon out grew the spare room and moved into our double garage which is now starting to get very cramped.

Do you think being focused on a niche audience makes marketing easier?

I guess the market, or the need for the business found us. Having been blessed with twins we found it a struggle to find the best products and advice and we were determined to help others. We understand the needs of our customers because we talk to them and visit twins clubs. We do sell into a niche but we have gained the respect of our audience for selling the true essentials and word travels fast when you offer great service. I thinking marketing is easier (not easy) if your business model is set on firm foundations. 

Are your sales all from the UK or are you attracting an international audience too?

We’ve received many orders from Europe and a few from the US. Shipping costs for export can hinder International trade but sales are on the up as twins-store.co.uk becomes more successful in search engine placements.

Has your blog helped you promote the business as it shows you are experts in your field?

We recently started a blog, well more a space we could post news items from around the world on issues relating to multiple births and we’ve been delighted at the feedback we’ve received. We also have a forum which is in the process of being integrated into twins-store, to offer our members more input and give advice/support.

What are your plans for the business in the next 6-12 months?

At this stage I’m still very much a full time dad, our kids have another year before they start primary school so our short term plans are to continue our expansion of twins-store and retain our high levels of customer satisfaction.  But we do have a longer term plan in place and I’m biting at the bit so watch this space.

Do the twins help out in the business at weekends?!

Not yet, but they have been great product testers. I look forward to the day they can work a tape gun and parcel orders!

Nigel Sanders talks to Emma Jones

• Twins Store