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Ex-financial services worker turns lockdown hobby into thriving carpet business
A Coatbridge textile manufacturer has turned a lockdown hobby he picked up from watching TikTok videos into a successful business and full-time career, as his personalized rugs featuring tattoo art have proven to be a big hit with customers across the US.
The 28-year-old founder of Inked Rugs Kieran Johnstonerecently resigned from her nine-to-five office job in financial services in Glasgow to focus on fulfilling a growing order book and growing demand from abroad.
To support the business’s next steps, a £20,000 loan from GC Business Finance and the British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans program has enabled Kieran to partner with an international supplier and stock the most popular rug designs, meaning the customers get faster delivery.
Like many, Kieran first downloaded TikTok when the country went into lockdown in 2020, but instead of wasting hours doomscrolling, he used his extra free time and the social media app for something much more productive. After coming across tufting clips – a textile technique used to make rugs – he decided to experiment, teaching himself to make different designs with the equipment set up in his room.
He began sharing some behind-the-scenes rug-making content on social media and soon began receiving orders for custom orders. With multiple tattoos, Kieran began experimenting with rugs in a similar style to replicate the popular body art and his first rose-themed rug sold out almost immediately.
Two years later, Kieran has over 40,000 social media followers and a full range of tattoo-inspired designs available to buy online, as well as offering a bespoke service where customers can have a mat made to match their own tattoos. It recently moved to a new unit on Dundyvan Industrial Estate where new stock can be stored. More than 300 rugs were sold during the first three months of 2024, with around 70% delivered to international buyers.
In the future, Kieran hopes to further expand the business in the US using new stockists and delivery partners, as well as partnering with popular tattoo artists to create designs. Closer to home, he has already collaborated with Glasgow artists Duncan Sweeney, Scott Martin and Mikkel ‘Big Mike’ Østberg for rug designs.
Kieran Johnstone said: “I never thought a skill I gained from watching TikTok would become my career, and although it was scary to take the leap and quit my job, it’s an opportunity that may never come again.
“With the support of the Start Up Loans program, I was able to expand and move to an e-commerce business model that allows me to increase stock levels and reduce delivery times, meaning more customers can get their hands on your products more quickly .
“All the rugs that arrived as part of the first order I placed with the new supplier sold faster than I imagined.”
He continued: “People are impressed with the quality of the rugs, but because I spent over a year making them myself every day, I know what I want in terms of the manufacturing process and the look and feel of the products.
“Now that I can focus on the business full time, I plan to grow and develop it further by building relationships with artists in the tattoo community as well as increasing the client base in the US and abroad.”
The British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans program has supported 390 entrepreneurs and provided more than £3 million in loans to new business owners in North Lanarkshire since it began in 2012.
Barry McCullochsenior manager of the UK Network, Scotland, at the British Business Bank, said: “Supporting young entrepreneurs like Kieran is a key part of our Start Up Loans funding objective and it’s great to see him take the courageous but exciting step to grow and become your own boss.
“We know that UK companies often struggle to export, so it’s fantastic to see this Scottish company starting so many international sales and being ambitious about expanding in the US. We wish Kieran every success in his next chapter.”