INTERVIEW
the way, and we wanted to move nearer
water, and in a good environment to
bring up our children.
“We were in Lymington one day and
someone suggested we try the Isle of
Wight, so we came and had a look, loved
it, and moved here. I asked Glyn what
we would do for a living, and being an
entrepreneur and eternal optimist, he
replied ‘ don’t worry, we will think of
something’!”
Nearly 25 years on, Claire and Glyn
are enjoying life on the Island as much
as ever. She explained how her business
empire grew, saying: “I had worked for
Italian fashion companies for many
years, selling to big groups liked John
Lewis, Austin Reed and Selfridges. The
business was combining economics with
my love of clothing, retail and of Italy,
where I spent a lot of time as a teenager.
“I supplied big groups with private
label products, until Glyn and I founded
Artigiano in 1995. I had always been
fascinated by mail order, and it was only
mail order in those days as it was still
pre-internet. We used the same suppliers
that I had always worked for, but instead
of putting someone else’s label in the
clothes we put our label in, and it went
from there. We specialised mainly in
women’s wear; Italian knitwear, skirts,
trousers and jackets, as well as shoes and
handbags.”
The company grew so rapidly that
Artigiano had more than 200,000
customers across the UK, and employed
150 staff. It was all based on the Island,
with headquarters in Shalfleet, and a
big warehouse in Cowes, with more than
2,000 orders a day being shipped out.
It was not until 1998 that Artigiano
had its first website, and a transactional
website followed two years later,
allowing customers to buy on-line.
Before Claire and Glyn sold the business
in 2006, they had opened a few shops,
catering for Island customers on a more
personal basis with a hugely-popular
outlet in Cowes.
Claire said: “We decided to sell because
we would either have had to go to the
next level, which would taken another
five years, or bring in some outside
investors. So we had a management
buy-out and I was involved for a further
two years until it was sold on to another
company. It was a lot of fun, and we had
the most fantastic people working for us.”
Since selling the company,
Claire has spent time with the
family, and has learned to sail,
often showing her skills in her
Folk boat against mostly male
opposition in the waters off
Yarmouth. She has also been
involved in the Prince’s Trust
since 2009, being part of the
Enterprise Fellowship group
which comprises entrepreneurs
nationwide, raising money to
help young people start their
own businesses.
Claire said: “I am very
passionate about it, and that
is why my theme for my High
Sheriff year is enterprise
and business. I really believe
that in this era when the
public sector is declining,
people have to consider
self-employment and starting
a small business of their
own as a way of managing their own
future. It is what I believe is needed on
the Island and unfortunately no one
is going to do it for us; we have to do it
ourselves.
“My other project is that the High
Sheriffs have a small charity called the
High Sheriff ’s Trust, and its aims are
to focus on young people, the elderly
and crime prevention. The Trust makes
grants of relatively small sums to
community groups, and as the High
Sheriff spends a lot of time meeting such
groups, and seeing what help is needed,
it is a powerful way of feeding funds into
the local community.
“We don’t have any natural sources
of income, so I am securing some for
the next three years, and I am pleased
we are going to be the charity of choice
for Cowes Classic Sailing Week, and
the Chamber of Commerce have also
promised to support us, along with other
organisations. I want to raise the profile
of the High Sheriff ’s Trust and secure its
financial future for the next few years, so
we can play an important role in helping
the local community.”
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