Leanne Hodgson

Name:

Leanne Hodgson

Business:

Leanne's Bouncy Castle Hire

Web site:

Years in business:

Number of businesses:

1

I was born and raised in Sunderland and over the years I’ve had a vast array of jobs, from working as an air hostess to tagging criminals. I’m the sort of person that needs to keep busy. I have a black belt in karate, regularly do part-time modeling and have previously abseiled off the Stadium of Light for charity; I’m even running the Race for Life this year…all on top of being a single mother to a 17-month-old son.

I left my previous air hostess job to look after my son. During my time off it struck me that I was fed up with earning other people money and thought ‘why not do something for myself’? That’s when I decided to go for it.

I noticed that there was an abundance of male orientated bouncy castle hiring firms, with very few women in the trade. I saw a strong market for the service and had plenty of my own ideas for what could be offered that as yet no-one else does.

Before I knew it I was on my way to setting up ‘Leanne’s Bouncy Castle Hire, providing supervised bouncy castle hire for weddings, christenings, birthdays, barbeques, fetes and fund raising events across the North East.

It was difficult getting started. Even a small bouncy castle can cost up to £1,500 and I had to use all the money I’d saved working as a cabin crew member. The gamble paid off and today the business is booming,

It’s sometimes hard to balance family and business, but not impossible. Working from home enables me to look after my son and when I’m busy, my mum and dad step in to help.

The nature of work is great too, I can drop off a bouncy castle and leave it for a few hours before picking it up again, allowing me to run my domestic errands.

I won’t lie, it’s demanding. When you’re running your own business you have to be alert 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I can’t simply switch off, the phone is constantly ringing and sometimes I have to ‘down tools’ to deliver a job on short notice.

I think the two main success factors have been honesty and reliability. I provide a fair service to my customers that is good value for money. I also make a point of being punctual, as in my business turning up on time is crucial in building a solid reputation and delivering a good service.

The only advice I’d give to any budding entrepreneurs would be to go for it! You don’t always need business experience or even a business plan. If you know what you want and how to get it, you have what it takes.

I’ve recently had loads of positive feedback which is a real moral boost. I couldn’t have got this far without the support of my family and friends. My parents have been a rock, helping to look after my baby son and constantly giving me encouragement. My brother has been amazing, often working voluntarily and always lending me help when I need it.

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