1. How does it feel to be celebrating 20 years of Lisa Angel?

It feels utterly mind-blowing that the brand was born 20 years ago and we're still thriving today. Time has flown, but when I look back on what we've accomplished in that time it also feels enormous.

2. Where did Lisa Angel begin?

The brand was born out of a desire to begin my own business in my home county of Norfolk following many years of working in London. In 2004, while on maternity leave, I started hand-crafting jewellery on my living room floor. I sold the first few pieces at local craft fairs, and in 2006 I was offered a table in the food court of Norwich's newly build Chantry Place shopping centre. This table soon turned into a permanent stand on the ground floor, and a few years later in 2011, we were thrilled to open our first retail store in the Norwich lanes.

3. What was one key turning point where the brand grew from a home-based business to a recognised part of the high street?

Launching on Not On The High Street in 2011 was a huge milestone for the brand. We had a handful of very popular products on the site and very quickly ran out of space in my house, meaning we had to find somewhere we could expand into. This took longer than expected, causing a rather frantic period where everything felt a bit mad!

4. What is your proudest moment so far?

We've won some amazing business awards over the years which had provided real pinch-me moments. As well as this, each new store we've opened has been huge, and makes me feel so proud of the wonderful team behind the brand.

5. Where did the idea for your first design come from?

At the time, everyone was mad about homemade jewellery with that shabby chic, vintage style. Charms were always the focus, so I started out with charm bracelets. As pearls have always been popular, the first piece was a pearl bracelet adorned with cute vintage charms - a design we have decided to recreate in our 20th year commemorative collection.

6. What has been the biggest obstacle you've had to overcome?

Having a young family was both a blessing and also a great challenge when I first started out. I never truly felt like I was winning when all I could see was how much I was juggling work with family. Luckily, I had a wonderful business coach called Ann who helped me to see my desires for the business more clearly and create a plan on how to achieve success while tackling motherhood.

7. What one thing do you think helped Lisa Angel evolve into the recognised brand it is today?

The opening of a new store makes a big impact on our notoriety as a brand as it's so valuable having a permanent spot on the ever-evolving UK high street. Opening our second store in Norwich in 2018 - back in our old stomping ground of Chantry Place - definitely gave us the opportunity to develop a slightly wider customer base.

8. What's something about the business that might surprise people?

It always surprises people to hear that Lisa Angel is actually my real name!

9. Who inspires you?

My mum has always been a great inspiration to me as she had her own business while I was growing up. Her hard work and dedication taught me to never give up on my dreams.

10. How do you stay inspired and creative after two decades in the business?

The team behind Lisa Angel is so incredible, with talent and creativity in abundance. Having a wonderful team of people that I trust to truly maintain the LA vision encourages my own creativity and passion for the brand, and when the team is all together in one place I feel so proud of what we've achieved.

11. Were there any risks you took in the beginning that felt particularly bold at the time?

Every shop we open feels a bit daunting, despite it being incredibly exciting, too. Our first ever bricks-and-mortar store opening down the lanes in Norwich felt terrifying at the time, but the ‘risk’ seemed to immediately pay off as the store was popular from the outset. Opening our first store outside of Norfolk was nerve-wracking, too, but the wonderful people of Southwold made it all feel amazing from the moment we opened the doors.

12. How have customer relationships evolved over the years, especially with the advancement of social media and e-commerce?

As we grew bigger and started selling online, we veered away from knowing so many of our customers personally, as we had done in the beginning. We still have a very loyal customer base, though, with many known faces regularly visiting our stores. We've also seen a completely different customer base since venturing out of Norfolk with our new Southwold store, which has been really exciting.

13. How do you ensure that the brand retains its original values such as ‘personal pieces ideal for gifting’ as it expands?

Though we love to venture into trend-led territory, we still like to maintain our strong gifting roots. We're always on the lookout for something different, unique, and sentimental for the gifting experience. We will hop on trends from time to time but we strive to keep our products traditionally heartfelt with our wide range of bespoke products, personalisation methods, and handmade features.

14. Have there been any trends in jewellery and gifting that you've embraced, and how have they impacted the business?

There was a time quite early on in our journey when scarves were hugely popular, and not just in winter. We decided to add scarves to our product range and they did so well that Christmas, both for gifting and self-purchases, that our tiny kiosk was bursting with them.

15. What new markets or regions would you love Lisa Angel to expand into in future?

I adore Cambridge and have always dreamt of a shop popping up in that beautiful city. We're also keen to expand our e-commerce more into Australia, and actually now have a few wholesale boutiques in New Zealand, so watch this space!

17. Are there any causes or values that you would like Lisa Angel to champion more in the future?

From the start, my passion has been championing small, independent, local, and female-founded businesses. As a brand, we love working with as many of these types of brands as possible, to really fly the flag for independents on the high street. After all, in a time where the landscape of the British high street is rapidly changing, it really is a case of ‘use them or lose them’ for our favourite small businesses.

18. What one piece of advice would you give to someone in a similar position to you when you started?

Make it your mission to learn from people and their experiences. Use your instincts to trust people, too, whether this is colleagues in your business or external mentors or associates, it is so important to find people who care as much as you do about your brand.

19. What are your hopes and ambitions for the future?

I'd love to just continue doing what we do, flying the flag for small businesses and holding firm on the UK high street. I've always felt that we've grown organically over time, without any crazy moves that feel ultra risky. Everything we've achieved has been incredible and still feels like a bit of a dream come true, and I'd really love to continue on that trajectory.

20. Finally, where do you see Lisa Angel in the next 5 or 10 years?

The opening of our newest store - particularly as it is our first out of Norfolk - has given us a lot of energy and inspiration to try new places and hopefully open some new stores. I'd love to have one or two more stores in the next 5-10 years, and for online and wholesale to continue to grow and flourish, too. I'm proud beyond belief of what we are, what we do, and how we do it, and I can't wait for what's to come next for Lisa Angel.