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Ruth Wright - Bespoke Alterations
Ruth Wright, 54, from the Boulevard, West Hull, has set up a clothing and curtain alterations business in the city’s Trinity Market. Ruth has taken a gamble and returned to a passion, first developed in childhood, of working with needle and thread, after taking redundancy from the Probation Service in 2011. As a youngster, she followed her mum’s example in picking up the needle to knit and make clothes for her Barbie doll and for her siblings, continuing this trend for creating outfits for herself as a teenager, and decorating her bedroom with her own soft furnishings.
Ruth went on to work in retail, helping customers choose suitable colour schemes, then took an art and dress design qualification to eventually teach part-time at college.
Her passion is fabric, clothing and tailoring and the new venture is to capture the market of busy commuters who have no time to alter clothes, Given the business is based in the Old Town, she hopes to attract the professionals for clothing and curtain alterations. On this basis, Ruth aims to have an earlier opening time to meet the rush-hour. The mother of two is looking forward to having the direct contact with people once again and bringing some old-fashioned customer service to the business.
Ruth says: “I had the vision to do this in January 2011 when I started thinking of my future. Working full-time in an office job had put my creativity on hold. I had taken a business diploma in the last year to give myself some options and had some guidance from the Hull Enterprise Partnership for a business plan.
“As my business grows, I hope to expand into selling haberdashery and maybe in time create a shop of my own to sell clothes. I am a big fan of vintage outfits such as the glamour look from the 1950s.”
As a qualified tutor, Ruth is also running sewing classes on Tuesday evenings at the Boulevard Village Hall after being urged by former students to set them up: “I have the freedom to be mobile and take my sewing machine wherever it is needed. In this economic climate, people should be encouraged to save and recycle and not live in this throw-away society. Half of the nation can’t sew and I am helping to bring the skill back to people of all ages, making curtains, dresses or roman blinds, and much more.”
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