Bethan-Elena Jones, womenswear buyer at House of Fraser, offers insight into what she looks for in new suppliers and shares tips on pitching.

How to sell your products to House of Fraser

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, offers insight into what she looks for in new suppliers and shares tips on pitching.

What do you look for in small business suppliers?

Strategy and knowledge of their market. Of course it's so important to be passionate about your brand or product.

However, personally I respond well to suppliers who are absolutely clear in their share of the market and informed on who they are and who they sit alongside on the shop floor. It shows that you have done your research and are up to date with the retail climate. 

Additionally, you should have a clear strategy on your business. What is your five year plan? How are you going to get there? And why do you think is House of Fraser is a part of that?

Organisation is also key. Being able to explain your business set up and logistics instil confidence that you will be able to work with a large department store. We work with several small suppliers and launch processes are only ever seamless when they've been informed and organised themselves with House of Fraser supplier terms and online teams.

Are there any product categories you're particularly interested in at the moment?

As my main buying remit is occasionwear, I'm particularly interested in the bridesmaid/bridal market. Increasingly brides are working on a tighter budget and don't want to splash out on traditional shapes.

We've seen a huge trend towards customers buying different colours of the same dress for their bridal party, or different dresses for each person all together!

We've also got more and more feedback that customers are demanding bridal from us. We recently launched a gorgeous brand, Needle & Thread, online.

Our customers took us all by surprise saying they were buying the products as wedding or bridesmaid dresses despite us classing it as prom/eveningwear. We're adapting to these changing trends and I think there's so much potential for online business in the wedding sector. Watch this space!

What are your top tips for small companies pitching their products to you?

Buyer Bethan-Elena Jones offers insight into what she looks for in new suppliers and shares tips on pitching.

I&apos;m a <a href=&apos;https://danmartinuk.com/&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>freelance journalist and event host</a> who helps small businesses and the organisations that support them. I&apos;m also Enterprise Nation&apos;s news reporter and Bristol Local Leader.
I have 20 years of experience as a small business journalist having interviewed hundreds of entrepreneurs from famous names like Sir Richard Branson and Deborah Meaden to the founders behind brand new start-ups.
I&apos;ve worked for a range of leading small business publications and support groups, most recently as head of content at Enterprise Nation where I was responsible for the prolific output of content on the company&apos;s blog and social media. I now freelance for Enterprise Nation as the website&apos;s <a href=&apos;https://www.enterprisenation.com/business-news&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>news reporter</a> and as the host of the <a href=&apos;https://www.enterprisenation.com/podcast&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>Small Business sessions podcast</a>.
I&apos;m based in Bristol where I run and host regular events with the local small business community in my role as Enterprise Nation&apos;s Local Leader for Bristol. I also have strong connections with other major business organisations in the south west region.
In total, I&apos;ve hosted over 100 events including conferences with an audience of hundreds for international brands like Xero and Facebook and live web chats from inside 10 Downing Street.
With my partner, I co-run <a href=&apos;https://www.lifestyledistrict.co.uk/&apos; target=&apos;_self&apos;>Lifestyle District</a>, a lifestyle blog focused on culture, art, theatre and photography.

Freelance content creator & event host

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Hello! I am a Programme Manager at Enterprise Nation, with a passion for providing support for small business owners through digital campaigns with our partners. I have a particular love for all things marketing, online and in-person events and strategy!&nbsp;

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Next Generation: Market and access customers for your service

A group for all Next Generation participants. Join other likeminded entrepreneurs and trainers to learn how to stick to weekly goals and be held accountable for your business! If you’re not part of the Next Generation Bootcamp but would like to connect with like-minded business owners, don’t worry, there’s a group for you too!

I started my first business at 17. Back in the 80&apos;s there was no internet, no support and I didn&apos;t have a network of friends or family that could help. Over the next 40 years I have started many more from a courier company to an in-flight catering business.
As I gained experience, I would willingly share it with others. Sometimes people just want to bounce ideas around with someone that has experience and knowledge that leave you motivated and better informed. Unfortunately, not everyone has that important network so I decided to volunteer for The Prince&apos;s Trust.
Having someone believe your idea and you as an individual is invaluable, especially when no one else does. One of my first Prince&apos;s Trust mentees would give me a dozen reasons to pack it all in and I would give him a dozen to keep going. He eventually went on to win the prestigious Pride of Britain Awards. I volunteered for the Trust for over a decade not just as an advisor but the interim Chair of the awards panel.
I am a qualified business advisor, an accomplished business mentor and an accredited business coach. But most of all, I have decades of experience supporting start-ups. My personalised approach to support gives clients the confidence to implement ideas with the skills and resources to hand. My entrepreneurial mindset helps them identify a wider audience for their products or services.
In my last role I was the lead for Enterprise &amp; Innovation within a housing association. I helped to start and support over 300 businesses and social enterprises across the North-West of England. I ensured start-ups had access to funding, support and premises.
I am also the Director of a waste management company, an innovating and patent pending service that increases the capacity of communal bins with a mobile compacting service.
My ongoing mission is to provide professional entrepreneurial support and advice to individuals looking to start up or grow their business.

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I am the Queen of Reinvention, certified in Human Design and Emotional Intelligence. I’m also a long-time student of Abraham Hicks (The Law of Attraction). Entrepreneurs hire me because secretly, they know they’re capable of so much more, but either they don’t know what’s stopping them from taking the next move or they do and they’re ignoring their intuition. Is this YOU? That’s totally normal. That’s where all my clients begin. I like to ask challenging questions, so let’s start. Do you value yourself? Do you fantasise about a different or much better life when you have space and time for yourself? I’ve been here myself Friends and colleagues would say to me - you’re so successful, how do you do it? But I didn’t feel successful. I had nothing other than my work. I’d worked globally in the boardrooms of several blue-chip companies, as an Executive Coach and team-building expert. I was highly trained and knew I was talented. Twenty years ago I was using some pretty advanced energy and play techniques which got great results. I helped grown men in grey suits get out of their heads and into their gut and their intuition. I had great fun at work. Away from that environment, I had a secret life going on in my head which meant I was desperately trying to find someone to love me. In 2013 I began dating my husband, John. We dated way back in 1983 and somehow 30 years later, John discovered me online. That&apos;s a story for another time. I found John and the Law of Attraction at the same time. Neither of us was in a good place, but we made a promise to ourselves that we were going to help each other, communicate openly and find happiness together. The Law of Attraction most definitely helped us both examine our behaviour and what we were attracting, but it wasn’t until I was introduced to Human Design that the magic happened. I began to see I wasn’t valuing my uniqueness. I began to see I was hiding and keeping myself small. I began to see the life that I’d kept secret from others WAS how I was meant to be As The Queen of Reinvention, I help women understand their uniqueness and how to make their secret life come true.

The Queen of Reinvention

Sheena Mason-White

I am the Queen of Reinvention, certified in Human Design and Emotional Intelligence. I’m also a long-time student of Abraham Hicks (The Law of Attraction). Entrepreneurs hire me because secretly, they know they’re capable of so much more, but either they don’t know what’s stopping them from taking the next move or they do and they’re ignoring their intuition. Is this YOU? That’s totally normal. That’s where all my clients begin. I like to ask challenging question

How to sell your products to House of Fraser

What do you look for in small business suppliers?

Are there any product categories you're particularly interested in at the moment?

What are your top tips for small companies pitching their products to you?

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