Ahead of the festive season, we’re encouraging everyone to shop small – and what better way to do so than with our Gift Guide 2025 edition! With a wide range of members across the UK from sweet hampers to skincare, we’ve got you covered.
In this Member Spotlight series, we’d like to introduce you to the brilliant minds behind the Gift Guide. Meet Richard Dalziel, founder of My Leather Key Fob.
Can you tell us about your business and why you started?
There were a few factors that came together to make it happen. I’d been thinking about starting a side hustle for a while, and this felt like the right opportunity. My favourite key holder was finally falling apart, and every replacement I found was either overpriced or cheaply made from poor-quality materials.
I’d also been wanting to create a crowdfunding project of my own, and this idea felt like something genuinely unique. Having spent many years in the Swiss watch industry, I already had great contacts in high-end leather manufacturing – it all just clicked.
Bringing all of this together, I developed My Leather Key Fob in early 2020 and launched our Kickstarter campaign that summer. We set ourselves a realistic goal, and the project was fully funded within four days. True to our word, we shipped every pre-order in time for Christmas.
And, as they say, the rest is history!
What makes your product the perfect gift for the holiday season?
All our leather key fobs are made from high-quality, full-grain leather. They’re designed to last for years, so we feel it’s great value for money and the feedback from customers has been fantastic!
Depending on your budget, it could be your main present, your Secret Santa gift, or a stocking filler.
What do you love most about running your company?
I love the broadness of responsibility, freedom and ownership that comes from running my own business. I also love working with my customers and sharing the story of my business.
How do you prepare for the festive season and what advice would you give to other small business owners?
I think it’s about stepping back and analysing the potential opportunity and product demand in advance. This allows me to create my purchase plans and ensure sufficient lead times are in place – I’m then able to develop my marketing strategy, business partnerships and essentially my spending and cash plans.
How has Tide helped you to run your business and what has been your favourite feature?
The Tide mobile app is really easy to use. When I’ve had any questions, the in-app messaging tools have always worked well for me.
Being able to utilise the ‘Tap to Pay on iPhone’ tool has also made taking payments very straightforward.
What’s the biggest challenge for your business at the moment?
The biggest challenge is trying to gauge the confidence level within the UK consumer marketplace, since this links directly to my working capital requirements. It’s important so that I can figure out a sensible, achievable sales forecast and what stock is required to support that plan.
Lastly, what’s one tip you would give to people who want to start their own business?
As a business owner, you need to understand your strengths and weaknesses. If you can afford it, you should look to use specialists where you have gaps in your working knowledge or skill set.
For me, it's photography. When you’re selling primarily online, you need to have quality imagery to support both the website and any social media content.
