21/01/2025
✨Important Update from the Board ✨
It is with a tinge of both sadness and hope that we announce today that Self Made Studios will cease manufacturing operations in February.
As a social enterprise in its eight year, we have endured through Covid, the cost of living crisis and many other challenges, serving UK businesses with high end design and manufacture as a vehicle for training and employing people in the North East, many of whom face a variety of barriers to opportunity. We are so proud of this work and of the many people who have worked with us. However, changes in the economy are showing us that our current model no longer makes sense. For this reason, our current production unit will close.
If you are a current client, you should have received an email today outlining next steps and offering some smooth transition options to another manufacturer, so please do check your email.
We will be taking a complete hiatus from non-essential operations for a few months to reflect on whether we can still serve our primary aims of training and teaching using a different model. During this time, we will be inviting all who are interested in textiles in our local area to explore in some workshops whether a co-operative model of work could be viable, and we are so delighted to say that some of our equipment will be moved over to an exciting new social enterprise called MINE (Made in the Northeast), who are establishing co-operative artist studio space in the Newgate Centre, led by local artist, Jackie Stonehouse.
Whether the next step happens as Self Made Studios or another entity is yet unknown, but we are encouraged by the prospect of the next phase of north east textiles being a community effort and know the lasting impact of our eight years of work with wonderful people will not go to waste.
Thank you so much to all of our past and present clients and staff, to our original co-founder Hannah Watherston, to The Auckland Project for hosting us in No.42 and to everyone who has supported us.
On a personal note, I would like to thank and congratulate our managing director Alexa Batty on almost 8 years of hard graft and exemplary leadership. Under her guidance, so many people have found training, employment, and an adaptable and accessible workplace where people are truly cared for. I could not be more proud of her for all of it.
Warm wishes from us all here,
Gillian (chair) on behalf of the board with Alex, Fiona and Graham.
