By SWBC Member SWIG Finance
A West Dorset ceramicist has opened her own studio and is now making beautiful vases and offering teaching workshops with the help of a Start Up Loan.
Amelia Christoffers borrowed £3,000 to help her convert a farm building into the Clay and Salt Ceramics studio near Charmouth. She used the loan to buy a potter’s wheel, materials including clay and glaze, paint for decorating and shelving for drying and displaying pieces.
She now hopes to pass on her love of pottery to others while creating her own work. Sessions will focus primarily on clay using hand-building methods, with the occasional foray into Amelia’s second skill: flower-arranging.
A spell as a freelance florist in London inspired her to design pots for ikebana-style arrangements – the Japanese art of minimalist floristry, translating as “giving life to flowers”. “There’s a lot of waste in the florist industry, but you don’t need huge amounts to appreciate the beauty,” Amelia explains. “You might look at a single bloom and see perfection equal to the impact of a massive arrangement. I decided then to create pots for minimal floral displays.”
Having launched in May 2025, Amelia initially ran the studio two days a week alongside shop work before taking the plunge and going full-time with Clay and Salt Ceramics in August. She offers private lessons, weekly courses and workshops, featuring both hand building and wheel throwing techniques.
She’s especially fond of group teaching: “With families, I tend to find parents love to watch their children learn, while friends have a laugh with each other. I love that emotional connection, and I find joy in sharing my knowledge with others who then say they have the pottery bug.”
Amelia came across the British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans programme during an internet search and was referred to Ellie Garbett, Start Up Loans officer for SWIG Finance. “Having looked up loans online, I felt the interest rate was reasonable and that a Start Up Loan would help me to get the things I needed for a proper studio – so I wouldn’t have to say, ‘Sorry, I don’t have that yet’ – and have a bit extra in the bank as a cushion while I got myself ready.
“The application process was amazing. Ellie was so helpful in establishing that I was eligible for the loan and in getting it all approved. I can’t recommend her, or SWIG Finance, highly enough.”
Ellie said: “I wanted to support Amelia and her application for Clay and Salt Ceramics, because she came to us with a strong, well thought-out business plan, and her experience and knowledge gave me confidence this would be an amazing and successful venture.
“She genuinely loves teaching others and sharing her skills, and the way she brings people together to learn and create pottery makes this business something special and worth backing.”
Start Up Loans is part of the British Business Bank, which is the government’s economic development bank. The programme offers personal loans of up to £25,000 per director at a fixed rate of interest and free business mentoring to help anyone start or grow a new or early-stage business. SWIG Finance is the Bank’s Business Support Partner for the government-backed programme in the South West.
Find out more at www.startuploans.co.uk
About Start Up Loans
The Start Up Loans programme provides personal loans for business purposes of up to £25,000 at a fixed interest rate per annum and offers free dedicated mentoring and support to each business.
The primary aim of the Start Up Loans programme is to ensure that viable start-ups and early-stage businesses have access to the finance and support they need in order to thrive. A network of Business Support Partner organisations supports applicants in all regions and industries throughout the UK. The Start Up Loans programme is not designed to generate a commercial profit. Capital payments together with the interest are recycled to help meet increasing demands for finance.
Free guides on a range of subjects related to starting a business are available on the Start Up Loans website: https://www.startuploans.co.uk/free-start-up-guides/. You can find recent media press releases here: https://www.startuploans.co.uk/media-centre/.
The funding for the Start Up Loans programme is provided by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). The Start Up Loans programme is operated by The Start-Up Loans Company, a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales, registration number 08117656, registered office at Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ. The Start-Up Loans Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of British Business Bank plc which is a development bank wholly owned by HM Government. British Business Bank plc and its subsidiaries are not banking institutions and do not operate as such. With the exception of BBB Investment Services Limited they are not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority or the Financial Conduct Authority. BBB Investment Services Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. A complete legal structure chart for the group can be found at www.british-business-bank.co.uk.
About SWIG Finance
SWIG Finance is a people-based company that provides loans and support to help smaller businesses in the South and West Country grow. We base our lending decisions on potential rather than collateral, which means we can often support businesses when others can’t.
We’re growing every year. In 2023/24, we lent £14m to over 500 businesses, helping to create and secure more than 700 jobs and generate £71.5m in social impact. Download the report here.
If you’d like an informal chat about your funding requirements, get in touch with our friendly and professional team to see how we can help. Call 01872 227930 or email [email protected]
Image courtesy of SWIG Finance.
