Rise of 'garden glamping' saves Harrogate couple's business

Sarah and James Martin first set up Glawning in 2013, inspired by the idea of promoting a comfier and more stylish alternative to typical green, nylon awning

Over the last seven years, the couple gained an enthusiastic fanbase of glawning owners.

In the process, the husand and wife's innovative small company has won a clutch of awards, most recently the 2019 Brand Yorkshire Business Award for Best Micro Business.

They even started their own charity festival, Glampfest held in Kirkby Malzeard each year.

All that was threatened by the onset of lockdown to combat Covid-19.

Sarah Martin, director of Glawning, said: "We saw a sharp decrease in sales at the beginning of lockdown as our flagship product (the Glawning) is a glamping product largely used for attaching to a campervan/motorhome/caravan in order to go camping, glamping and to festivals, all of which are obviously prohibited now.

"But we have seen a rise in ‘garden glamping’ and because our glamorous awnings also double up as stand alone bell tents.

"Many customers, new and old have been finding solace in glamping on their properties to pretend they are camping.

"They have set up mini campgrounds in their back yards…lockdown on your lawn!"

New Harrogate school planned as part of housing development

So popular has garden glamping become, Sarah and James have been publishing a blog about it on glawning.com and have had a number of customers posting pictures of their home excursions in their glawnings on Facebook, creating a feeling of a real glamping community.

Sarah Martin said: "We are thrilled that our Glawning customers are still able to get some use out of the product and that it has alleviated the boredom of lockdown and also helped many participate in the Great British Campout which has raised so much money for NHS charities.

"As a small family business we have been hit hard by hit hard by the cancellation of festivals, closure of campsites and general shock that has resulted from the pandemic but we are confident that we can come back fighting after it’s all over.

"We are, amongst other support, getting regular contact emails from the Harrogate Borough Council Business Desk regarding grants, advice and information from the government which has been gratefully received and very helpful."

Harrogate Town FC raise thousands for Harrogate Hospital as part of HG Lockdown Fest

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.