INSPIRE: The Road Less Travelled...Debby Dean

Submitted by Kirsten Miller on Sat, 01/10/2011 - 00:00

This week, if you are a VW Camper Van enthusiast, we have a real treat in store for you! We meet Debby Dean of The Big Blue Bully Bus which has been seen at most of the northern UK Volkswagen trade shows - in this interview, we find out how a former teacher came to be on such an unusual path.

Please give your full name.
My name's Debby Dean and I've been running 'The Big Blue Bully Bus' for nearly 4 years. I use assorted knitting, sewing, crocheting & felting techniques to create a range of items which I then pack into a VW camper van along with a pop-up shop and head off to assorted weekend events and festivals up and down the country.

The 'Bully' bit of my business name is a reference to my passion for English Bull Terriers. A VW bus is also sometimes referred to as 'bulli' so there's a bit of a play on words thing going on in the name too.

Give a brief description of your career path up before you started your creative business.
I originally started out as a trainee photographer before embarking upon a career as a hairdresser. I left this when I had my two children in the late eighties and whilst at home with them I attended a local FE college to gain a mature access qualification which then enabled me to embark on a BEd (Hons) in Primary Design & Technology.

With my degree in hand I secured a part-time teaching job for a year before moving on to a full-time, permanent position in an inner city Primary school. I was a teacher from 1993 until the end of 2008 and for most of that time I loved it with a passion.

Camper Van Tea Cozy

What prompted you to pursue a creative career?
Stress made me decide to leave my job; it's as plain and simple as that. I went into teaching to teach – there's a clue in the job title. In the end I felt like my right to do this had been stripped away from me. There was too much paper pushing! After being diagnosed with reactive depression and a whole string of symptoms that saw me requiring antidepressants, sleeping pills and counselling I walked away from the profession and decided not to go back. I don't want to be in a position where I'm unhappy or stressed again and won't tolerate a job that has the potential to make me ill!

What was the most difficult thing about this decision? And what was the easiest?
Once it hits home that there's no longer a regular salary going into the bank each month the financial implications start to become more of an issue. I'm very much aware of the stresses and strains that my choice has placed upon my partner who now bears the brunt of financial responsibility.

Crochet Bunting

The easiest thing about changing my career has got to be the fact that I own a camper van. In many ways it's the key to the whole business even existing in the first place. I love VW's and I like driving round the country, meeting new people and setting up shop. Vince, my bus, gets me from A to B, he carries all my stock and I live in him when I'm trading. People all over the country recognise him and he's as much a part of the trade stand as the products that I sell. At times he's acted as a key selling point, with people stopping to admire him, chatting to me and then making a purchase whilst they're there.

How supportive of your decision were your family, friends and (former) colleagues?
My partner and children were incredibly supportive. They were relieved that I'd walked away from teaching because they saw just how ill and unhappy it was making me feel. When I announced that I'd decided to try and make a living out of crafting they were brilliant! My partner thought it was good idea but also expressed his concern that he couldn't see me making my first million any time soon. So we sat down together and made a plan - what to make, where to sell it etc.

Crochet Detail

My mum helped out where she could. She sat with me at the first few craft fairs I did and trawled through second hand shops and local markets buying cheap knitting wool, needles and crochet hooks. She now also knits for me on a regular basis. My nieces helped model my creations and friends and family were essential in spreading the word about my business venture in the early stages.

Possibly the biggest affirmation that I've made the right choice comes from bumping in to people who've known me a long time when they utter the words, 'It's so nice to see you smiling again'. That's when I know I've done the right thing.

Custom Bunting Detail

How has pursuing a creative career been compared with your previous career? What are the challenges, and what are the highlights?
These days it takes a lot to get me stressed. I'm my own boss and can't imagine things being any other way. I work at my own pace and create my own challenges and I'm constantly planning, evaluating and setting myself targets. But the good thing is that I don't have to push bits of paper around in order to be accountable to anyone else; I just get on with it.

The main challenges I've found myself facing are probably the same that a lot of self employed people come up against – when I first ventured out I knew nothing about running a business; I didn't have a clear plan about how to progress and had no idea about the legal side such as being insured, paying NI contributions or how to fill out a tax return. Luckily there's lots of help out there from the likes of small business advisers, the Chamber of Commerce, Job Centre+ and even the Taxman! Generally, it's provided free of charge too which is always a bonus.

Full Circle Entrance

Definitely a highlight for me has to be the fact that I now have a workshop space at the FullCircle Bespoke Design Emporium as well as a position teaching 'crafternoon' classes there twice weekly. It's an amazing place with a shop, cantina, gallery & event space, workshop areas and a brilliant drop-in-anytime kind of vibe. I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to work from such a creative outlet – and it's open 7 days a week!

Have you had any regrets about choosing a creative career?
I've had a couple of 'wobbles' over the last few years but the highs generally triumph over any lows. I think I'd find it very hard to go back to mainstream employment now.

What has been the best thing about your decision to pursue a creative career?
I do what I love. It's incredibly fulfilling to create things that people appreciate. It's fantastic when people walk into the trade tent, have a look round and then comment on how many wonderful things there are to choose from.

The Trade Stand

If you could give one piece of advice to someone considering taking up a creative career, what would that be?
Be realistic, plan carefully, always have a goal and be tenacious in your approach to achieving it. At the same time, never get too cocky when the going is good, prepare for things to sometimes go wrong and don't ever be afraid to talk to people and ask for help!

Most importantly – Don't forget to smile :)

What are your plans for the future?
My main aim at the moment is to get to grips with perfecting the designs for my festival clothing and then use the quieter Winter months to produce a full range of items ready to roll out at a few select events next year.

Wulli Bulli Pixie Hood

I'm not fully convinced that attending festivals on a weekly basis is necessarily the best way to move things forward now that I've done it for a few years. It's a great way to get things going and to give both your business and yourself a boost in the early stages but the whole festival scene is far too transient and seasonal in nature to support a business 365 days of the year. For this reason I've made sure that I've put plenty of time and effort into securing outlets that are prepared to sell some of my creations but have also worked equally hard to develop my online presence too. The festival lifestyle doesn't really do much to aid the creative side of things either as you end up in a repetitive cycle spending the best part of the week re-stocking existing designs ready to sell at the following weekend's event as well as working hard to complete customer orders – which 9 times out of 10 means creating even more of the same. It's so easy to get stuck in a rut and I've no plans to go down that route – Ever!

Early Bay Kilt Pin