We sat down with 3D Scotland and discussed all things Christmas!
What does Christmas mean to you and to your brand?
For us, Christmas is a time to spend with those closest around us, and to relax and unwind by taking part in the festivities. For 3D Scotland, Christmas is about creating excellent gifts for the people of Scotland (and beyond) - we love creating new, Christmas-themed products every year!
Does Christmas inspire you creatively?
Absolutely! That is why every year we bring out a new range of Christmas-themed products - this year we have Celtic and Rangers themed Christmas baubles, including Henrik Larsson, Ally McCoist, and the European Cup! Last year we brought out the Duke of Wellington Christmas bauble which has been a fan-favourite too!
How much work do you put into preparing for the Christmas season with your brand and products?
A lot of the work we do in preparation such as bringing out new, exciting products and streamlining our business is done throughout the year. This all culminates in around October where we have everything manufactured and begin our Christmas marketing campaigns. Actually a lot of the work over the Christmas period is around stock and inventory management, including stocking up the SDX, fulfilling customer orders, keeping track of inventory and making sure we don’t run out of certain products!
How busy do things get for you a this time of year?
Extremely busy. We both work full time and run 3D Scotland on the side, so managing manufacture, stock, inventory, deliveries of orders, marketing etc. is a challenge, especially around this time of year where it all goes a bit mad!
What impact does the Scottish Design Exhcange have on your business during the Christmas season?
The impact is massive. We see a huge uptick in sales from October to December across all our sales routes and the SDX is no different. We make the majority of our sales for the year within this small window. The benefit of have our products on sale in person throughout this period and not just through our website cannot be understated.
How does selling with the Scottish Design Exchange compare to selling at markets?
Scottish Design Exchange has been one of our main sales route since forming 3D Scotland back in 2021. They gave us a platform to grow from making a small batch of chess sets in a spare bedroom, to running a successful business with around 15 different products. We have tried selling in various markets across Scotland but SDX remains one of our only stable and consistent sales routes.
What is your best selling product at this time of year?
Our flagship products are our chess sets which sell extremely well this time of year. We now have Clydeside (Glasgow), Edinburgh, Celtic Legends and Rangers Legends (and we even provide special edition Edinburgh vs Glasgow and Celtic vs Rangers to get the rivalry going!). We offer large, premium versions (£169.99), and smaller, more affordable, mini versions (£74.99) of each chess set.
Any goals or ambitions for 2024?
We will be looking to expand our product range and bring out more exciting chess sets. We are currently exploring a Scotland Chess Set with pieces from all around the country, and other football-related chess sets! It would be great for people to get in contact with us to let us know what they would like to see captured in one of our iconic sets.
What message do you hope your customers take away this Christmas?
We hope that all of our wonderful customers have a lovely Christmas period filled with happiness, friends and family! We thank each and every one of you for contributing to our little business, and hope that our products have brought you a bit of joy!