Case studies: Charlotte Productions

Charlotte Productions
Charlotte Barker

Tel: 0141 589 5143

Background

Many women start off with a business idea which evolves into something quite different as time goes on. Charlotte Barker can testify to this as her initial concept has undergone a major transformation since she first came up with it in 1987.

She trained as a community worker, spending seven years as a refuge worker for Glasgow Women's Aid. While attending Northern College in Dundee, she came up with the idea of a board game designed to help women of all ages with personal development. She called it Vamos Mujer! (Let's Go, Women!) and it used humour to discuss the major contemporary issues affecting women.

International appeal

Copies of the game were sold to social, community and educational groups in such widespread places as Orkney, Kenya, France, Ireland, Pakistan and India. However, Charlotte discovered that women were also buying the game for enjoyment, and playing it at hen-parties and other social occasions.

Help from Women Into Business

After involvement with Women into Business and after contact with Glasgow Opportunities and Glasgow City Council, Charlotte carried out further research and discovered a niche in the "lifestyle" games market. She then launched a new version of the game in 2000 for both women and men, now called Vamos!

She became the first woman to win a £4,000 award from Glasgow Design Enterprise, and this has allowed the game to be redeveloped and repackaged through the Glasgow-based company Graven Images. She now has something completely different from her original product and has attracted investment interest.

New challenges

The lifestyle game is now being played at trendy parties by celebrities like Chris Evans, Sir Richard Branson and Jane Horrocks, and the creators of television sensation 'Big Brother' have even included it in the house for the housemates to play.

Charlotte says: "I needed a new challenge now, but to succeed you need to make compromises and sacrifices. I sold my beloved 1965 Morris Traveller to help me get started. It certainly helps also to have supportive family and friends who believe in what you are doing."