WATCH: Derbyshire schoolchildren's confetti business moves into first factory premises
A confetti-making business which started last year as a schoolchild’s summer holiday project has just moved into its first manufacturing premises in Amber Valley.
Ezra’s Confetti has grown so rapidly over the past year that its family owners have taken over a unit at the Heanor Gate Industrial Estate to reclaim the kitchen and dining room from drying flowers.
The business started almost by accident as owner Nathan Burns, 28, prepared for his own wedding to Catherine, 24, but now employs four part-time staff to meet demand, with input from shareholders Ezra, now seven, and Ivy, five.
Nathan, who has a day job as an educational consultant, said: “It was the school summer holidays so you’re always looking for affordable ways to keep the kids busy and entertained, and we really wanted to get them involved in the wedding plans.
“We had some flowers in the house so we thought we’d have a go at making confetti, did a little research, depetalled the flowers, dried them in the oven and that was that.”
He added: “The kids loved doing it, so we bought some more flowers to make enough for the wedding. When it was all over we had a fair bit left so we put it on Facebook Marketplace and people went bananas.
“We told Ezra he could sell it for extra pocket money. When he got his first £10 instead of buying sweets all he wanted to do was make more confetti. As more and more people heard about us, it kept growing and growing.”
The family began by buying fresh flowers from the supermarket, but have since developed a network of local florists, wholesalers and farms which sell them stock that would otherwise go to rot.
Unlike many pre-packed competitors, they offer a pick-and-mix choice of petals and other biodegradable ingredients – supplied in a choice of bags or cones – so customers can tailor confetti to the colour scheme of their wedding or any other celebration, and get an eco-friendly product created especially for them.
With the new premises, the service has expanded to offer resin-casing for flower mementoes after the event too.
So far the business has been able to keep its prices well below big name retailers, and the family has committed to sharing ten per cent of all profits to local charities.
Nathan said: “In any given month we’re probably doing 125 orders. It all came to a head over a bonkers weekend where we had about 80 people contact us in 60 hours.
“We knew at that point we had to start saying no to people or we had to set up a business. We all looked at each other, and said, ‘Let’s go for it.”
It has been no small undertaking. As well as Nathan’s job and family life, Catherine has recently taken her final exam to qualify as a vet.
Nathan said: “There have been moments when I wondered why we put ourselves through all this. It’s been a monstrous amount of work on top of our busy jobs, and a whirlwind seven or eight months, but it’s also been amazing and I’m still glad we’ve done it.
“With any new business there are a lot of start-up costs, and we’ve had to be quite reactive in how we work, so we’re not going to become Jeff Bezos overnight. We hope next year will be profitable, but the best thing has been what it’s done for us as a family.”
He added: “My dad was helping us out for six months, Catherine’s parents got involved helping us to source flowers wherever they went. It’s become a big family affair.
“What I enjoy most is that the kids still love it, even as it’s got bigger. It’s not like they have a work schedule. Any day they want to go and play in the park, we’ll go and do that
“But they still want to come and help out the business at weekends and during the holidays, they’re still earning pocket money and learning the value of working hard.
“If anyone comes to the unit, Ezra and Ivy could talk them through the entire process from start to finish, and what’s really lovely is the opportunities its given them.
“They’ve been on the television and the radio, they’ve met our mayor and MP – things most of us couldn’t imagine doing at any age, so I’m really excited by what they’re learning.”
For more details and orders, go to ezrasconfetti.com.