Name: Carl Morenikeji.
Age: 50.
What is your business called?
Scaramanga.
Where is it based? Cupar in Fife.
What does it produce, what services does it offer?
We are a lifestyle retailer. We design and make classic-inspired leather bags and accessories and source vintage furniture and interiors from around the world.
To whom does it sell?
We sell our bags around the world through our website and stockists. We have a store in Cupar. We also sell our vintage furniture and interiors to bars, restaurants, boutique hotels and interior designers. We have a small but loyal group of prop and production buyers who buy for films, TV dramas, entertainment shows and theatres.
What is its turnover?
£650,000.
How many employees?
Nine.
When was it formed?
In 2006.
Why did you take the plunge?
I had visited India several times travelling across the country and brought back an old leather satchel, hand-bound journals and a few small old wooden boxes. I felt there was an opportunity to start a business sourcing unusual items made by skilled craftspeople and vintage furniture. I had recently moved from Edinburgh to Fife and really didn’t want to commute back to Edinburgh.
What were you doing before you took the plunge?
I spent more than 10 years working for BT managing large IT and technology customers and then working in their emerging internet group in the mid-‘90s - a very exciting time. Working in the technology sector gave me a unique insight into how the power of the internet and apps were going to revolutionise the way we live and work.
How did you raise the start-up funding?
I started with only £3,000 of savings. Our first website cost £250. I ran the business from the kitchen table for our first two years, so costs were super-low. We’ve grown organically, never needing external funding.
What was your biggest break?
We were one of the original pioneers of bringing back the classic leather satchel as a fashion accessory. That was 13 years ago and although we have diversified into other bag styles, leather accessories and vintage furniture, we still sell many satchels. We’ve also created a niche as vintage and antique film props specialists and had our interiors in The Hobbit, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, Paddington 2, Victoria and Abdul and Disney’s Maleficent.
What do you most enjoy about running the business?
We have such a wide variety of customers from around the world, which means no two days are ever the same. Today we sell hundreds of different products. We’ll be selling completely different things in a few years.
What are your ambitions for the firm?
I would like to see us grow the wholesale side of Scaramanga. We’re working with a growing number of travel and marketing companies to offer branded leather accessories. Our small in-house design team works with our makers to design leather goods for their customers. There’s a great opportunity to expand the wholesale and trade interiors part of the business with the trend for vintage and recycled furniture. I have a good network of antique and vintage furniture dealers and sellers.
What single thing would most help?
A crystal ball! But seriously I think giving consumers the confidence to spend, so I guess keeping interest rates the same. That’s not asking too much.
What could the Westminster and/or Scottish governments do that would help?
There’s a lot of uncertainty with Brexit so close and it’s affecting many of our customers’ buying decisions. So all we really want is more stability and confidence that everything’s going to be OK in coming months and years..
What was the most valuable lesson that you learned?
Do your research, check it’s valid and plan. Then plan for things not working according to the original plan. Customers’ tastes and trends change. . Sometimes slowly, sometimes very quickly and often subtly.
How do you relax?
I love exploring the beaches and countryside of North-East Fife with my wife, Emma and kids Josh (10) and Ella (8). During the summer we visit fairs hunting for vintage finds. I love planning family holidays to far-off places. I enjoy reading Irvine Welsh, Ian McEwan and Elmore Leonard.
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