Nicole stood in front of her stand at the Earl's Court trade show

A GRAPHIC designer who took the brave step of setting up her own greeting cards business two years ago is celebrating a successful first trade show exhibition.

Nicole's 'Metro' range

Nicole Orsi, from Witchford, set up Red Berry Hill, an independent, design-led greeting card company, in 2011.

The mother-of-one exhibited her card ranges earlier this month at Top Drawer London, held at Earl’s Court. It is the UK’s leading event for design-led gifts and fashion accessories.

Nicole spent 12 months touring craft fairs with her greeting cards before taking the plunge and branching out to trade shows.

She says she enjoyed and gained a lot from her Earl’s Court experience.

She said: “Over the three days we had a lot of interest in the ranges, especially ‘Metro’, which has such subjects as man sheds, astronomy, cycling and camper vans, with comments that it was a different male range to others on offer.

“Although I did not come away with a stack of orders, I have a book full of contacts and follow-ups to get started on which I am very excited about.

“It was also great to spend some time with fellow publishers, all of whom were really helpful. It is such a great industry to be a part of.

“All in all I feel the show was a success for me and I am glad that I did it.”