Meet the Tenterden Glass Artist Inspired by Ireland’s Coast

About You

➡️ What’s a typical day like for you?

I’m usually up around 7am and straight down to Kenny, my kiln - [KilnKenny of course!!]. The kiln is currently starting a program early in the morning which means it’s usually ready by 7am the next morning. So, I take out the work from the day before and put in the next firing. Then it’s wash and work on the pieces that have come out – some take more than others, and package up for the shop. I usually arrive at the shop between 10 and 10.30, set up and start making more pieces. I’ll knock off around 4.30/5pm and head home.

➡️ What drives you - what’s your ‘why’?

Creativity and autonomy are my two drivers. I need both to feel grounded and happy. I’m creating every day of the week bar weekends now and can decide pretty much every element of my business. Why am I doing what I do? I love glass, I love creating and I really need to be my own boss. I also love the challenge of making art that people connect with and want in their homes. The necessity to bring enough money in is also a huge driver. I noticed this when I was in a full time job in education – if I was off sick I got paid, when I was on holiday I got paid. All well and good and very sensible economically, but it doesn’t motivate me to get up in the morning. If I don’t work I don’t eat and that’s a challenge I enjoy.

➡️ What three words would your friends use to describe you?

I’ve just asked two of them – neither of which know each other.

Liz [old school friend] said; energetic, creative, loyal.

Kathy [friend and mentor from dance teaching and ArtsPool days] said: Driven, creative, kind.

I’ll pay them later!

➡️ How do you relax or switch off from work?

We enjoy eating out and popping down the pub or just chatting quietly at the end of a day.  Every now and then a bit of TV but it’s rare. Sometimes we might drive down to the sea for a walk. Just quiet things.

➡️ What’s something you’ve learned about yourself since starting a business?

Well, this is my 2^nd business and I guess the learning happened then. I ran a limited company called ArtsPool from 2005 to 2020 writing resources for the GCSE Dance written paper – my adult career was primarily as a dancer and then dance educationalist before I found glass. I sold it and it’s still doing its thing which is a nice legacy. I learned that you can never fully switch off, you’re always thinking about the next project, always thinking about where the next £ is coming from but also that the freedom of not being dictated to day in and day out was delicious! I enjoy being able to work my work around my life to a greater degree than I ever could in a ‘proper job’!

➡️ Do you prefer working alone or as part of a team?

I prefer working alone but then having good banter and interaction scheduled in. I have one of those brains that when focused it can’t be interrupted and pick up where it left off easily. When I was working in school the interruptions were constant and I could never complete anything which was so frustrating. Menopause has not helped this! So yes, nice quiet alone working and then very happy to punctuate with some networking and collaboration before getting back to it.

➡️ Are you an optimist, realist or somewhere in between?

Good question and I think that changes depending on my environment. These days I would say somewhere in between. Hugely optimistic about my glass art but also realistic enough to know that there will be days when footfall is low and sales will dip. I’m always looking for the next opportunity though – keeps the dopamine levels up!

➡️ What’s your proudest personal achievement outside of business?

My children without doubt. Harry is 29 and a professional musician – incredible guitarist. Ned is 24 and doing his PhD in Physics[ Graphene] and Charlie is 16, just done his GCSEs and won the Principal’s award for outstanding achievement across all of Year 11 and about to go off to train to be a theatre technician, lighting. I don’t quite know how I managed to create such talented individuals!

➡️ Where abouts in Kent do you live?

Ashford.

➡️ What did you want to be when you were growing up?

A professional dancer.

➡️ Take us back to your childhood – were there early signs that you'd one day become an entrepreneur?

I think it was more a family trait. My father was an entrepreneur and my mum was joint Director and did the finances. I was born in a chip shop – their 1^st business and then spent most of my childhood in their 2^nd business which was an old style hardware/DIY/builders merchants in Wolverhampton. The norm was seeing my parents working from home, or rather us living above the shop and yard. Neither of them went ‘out to work’ as such. Dad was a real grafter and had tenacity and determination in spades. It probably never occurred to me to get a job in an office.

➡️ What was your first-ever job, and what did it teach you?

I was a professional dancer from aged 18-24 and so my first job was Cinderella at Bristol Hippodrome with Jim Davidson, Diane Lee [from Peters & Lee for those who are old enough to remember!]  and Allan Stewart [1980s TV comedian – again for those old enough to remember!]. It taught me to work hard, keep my head down, do as you’re told and that most ‘turns’ go to The Bunch of Grapes before and after the show! It also taught me that running up to the top floor dressing rooms to do a quick change was inefficient!

➡️ What’s a hobby or interest you pursue outside of work?

I love my garden and have a passion for David Austin Roses. I grew up not far from the nursery in the Midlands and my parents always had them. We visit at least once a year even now because there’s always room for one more! We have also just brought home a gorgeous new British Shorthair kitten and so he is a delightful pull on my time!

➡️ What’s a fun fact about you that most people don’t know?

I did 26 weeks at Butlins Bognor!

➡️ Describe your perfect day off?

Doing very little and just ‘being’ with my husband. Maybe a pub lunch and definitely the sea.

➡️ How do you manage the balance between running your business and personal responsibilities?

Both my husband and I are self-employed and so have the flexibility to do what we want to a certain degree. I start in the shop around 10am and so it gives me time to water the garden and get things together before I leave. As I work Saturdays we have moved our weekend to Sunday/ Monday and so it works well. My son Charlie is about to go off to college and is pretty self sufficient and so the biggest responsibility is currently the new kitten!

➡️ What motivates you to keep going during the tough days?

The knowledge that I always have free rein to create something new. I do get bored of doing the same thing after a while but that’s OK, because I move onto something else and it will always come back round again as fresh and exciting. It’s so important that everything I do is unique. Even when there are pieces in a familiar range, I still make sure that each one is different to the last.

➡️ If you didn’t run your current business, what other businesses have you thought about starting?

I was toying with the idea of a wellness centre at one point as I am mindfulness trained. I also have a second side line as an access arrangements assessor for students, which is cognitive profiling for reasonable adjustments in public examinations. This is one of the things I used to do as a SENCO in school and I can still do it privately. I run this under the name Kind Mind which can be found at kindmindassess.me.

About Your Business

➡️ What does your company do? What products or services do you sell?

I am a glass artist. I design glass art that has a solid root in the west coast of Ireland. All of the work is based on this area, specifically Connemara on the wild Atlantic coastline. I also run glass fusing workshops which are lovely ways to bring people together doing something creative and making something beautiful to take home.

➡️ When did you start the business?

February 2025

➡️ What was your very first product or service, and how has it evolved?

I played around with small pieces in a microwave kiln before I bought my proper kiln, Kenny. The first piece out of Kenny was a small dish I called the ‘Fields Tray’. It has since sold. Since then I have created bigger and more complex pieces, used many more processes and have just bought a second much bigger kiln to support demand – yet to be named, but probably Arnie [KilnArnie].

➡️ Did you have to secure initial funding to start your business or was it bootstrapped?

It was bootstrapped. I was very lucky about timing in that I sold a property earlier this year which helped fund the start up. It has also funded a new extension at home for my glass studio which will be an enormous help given the larger kiln coming in.

➡️ How did you come up with the idea for the business?

I’ve always loved glass and have collected Georgian and early Victorian decanters and glasses for many years. I have a nice collection of blown onion flask decanters at home. I was working in school until recently but the busy-ness, demands and lack of creativity was killing my spirit. I wanted desperately to run my own business again with something creative so I went off and did a glass fusing course. I fell in love with it straight away and booked in for more sessions. The story is important though because that feeds everything I create. My husband is Irish and from Carlow in south east Ireland, but we have fallen in love with Connemara on the west coast and decided to retire there in a few years time.

➡️ What’s the story behind your business name?

Mara is short for Connemara, although people do think that’s my name! Amore because we love it so much!

➡️ What were the biggest challenges you faced when starting out?

Making the decision to leave my financially secure job in education.

➡️ How did you transition from side hustle to full-time business?

I’m an all-in person so once I decided, that was it. Left education and threw myself into making.

➡️ How did you get your very first customers, and what strategies worked?

I did a series of craft fairs. The main strategy was how the work was displayed. It’s really important to have it in people’s eyeline and with good lighting and always put it into people’s hands. People are scared of glass and instinctively avoid touching it but it’s sturdy stuff and you need to connect with it. They also like the story because each piece has meaning and individuality. I found that when these things were in place, sales were really good and it’s something I use all the time in the shop. I have lovely chats with people!

Growth & Strategy

➡️ What strategies have been most effective in growing your business to the size it is today?

Knowing my market. My demograph [generally] leans towards the over 30s and a higher percentage of women to men but there are exceptions and I have some lovely gentlemen that come back again and again and who have commissioned bespoke pieces. Tenterden is perfect for me because there are older people here who appreciate handmade and unique pieces. Faversham craft fairs were good for testing this out – it worked there and so I felt it would work here, and it does. There are some of my collections which draw people more than others and so I tend to make sure that these are always well stocked, but I always need something different to stand out – one offs and one of a kind pieces like my Inishturk at Dusk tile.

➡️ Why do you think your customers/users choose you over your competitors?

There is a lot of glass out there, lots of beautifully made pieces, but many focus on flowers, little houses and fairly standard coastal scenes. Because I’m rooted in the wilds of Ireland, my pieces don’t set out to be pretty, but capture that wilderness – wind, rough ocean, scrubland, mountains with a lot of movement in the mix. People tell me that it is beautiful and different and I like that.

➡️ What’s your top tip for building trust and winning new clients?

As with all relationship building – good communication, being real, open and honest. I like to stay local in my marketing and so Next Door is preferred over the standard social media platforms really. I want people to come into the shop and interact with me and the glass – that’s how connections are made and how trust is built.

➡️ If you could only use one distribution channel to grow your business, which would it be and why?

Next Door. Because my work has to be seen in the flesh, handled and connected with and staying local brings people into the shop. They then talk to others in the area who come in as well. My workshops often sell because people have seen me on Next Door and then come in specifically to ask about them.

➡️ What’s the most rewarding feedback you’ve received from a customer?

People tell me regularly how much they love my work and talking about its inspiration.

Challenges & Lessons

➡️ What’s been your hardest day in business so far – and how did you push through it?

The day where I only took £15! It wasn’t too much of a challenge because I got a good day’s making in and I knew it would be different the next day – which it was. Retail peaks and troughs and there seems to be no rhyme nor reason to it. Knowing this is helpful when there is a quiet day.

➡️ Have you ever had to pivot your business model? What prompted the change?

Sort of. I didn’t expect to be buying a large kiln this soon! It has become a necessity though. Each firing programme can take around 18 hours and some of the pieces go in two or three times so you can imagine how long one piece could take. I realised pretty quickly that my shelves were emptying quicker than I could replenish and so a second kiln became top priority – especially as we start to lead into Christmas gifting. To have two running, one of which is large, will mean I can meet demand and keep growing. It’s changed the finances a bit, but I’m hoping that the speculate to accumulate model will serve me well!

➡️ Who are the key figures that contributed to your success, and how did they influence the journey?

My husband Colman is number one! We talk through the designs, firing programs and pieces all the time, He does my website [he runs Four Lakes web design] and adds little useful widgets to help navigation. He is my biggest supporter! My brother Steve is also a huge support. He has commissioned a few things now and always insists on no mates rates. I send him pics of the pieces often for his feedback as I know he will tell me how it is!

➡️ Have you faced any significant failures, and how did you overcome them?

A couple of pieces have broken in the kiln but that is actually an opportunity to learn. You learn to read the glass to know when in the program it broke – so that you know which element needs to change. One piece that did just that actually turned into quite a striking piece and sold last week so definitely not a failure! Another time I put an expensive piece of limited edition glass on the wrong program and managed to liquify it. When I saw the temperature the kiln was at I knew there was nothing I could do and so had to wait to see how it turned out. It was absolutely not what I wanted but actually turned into a happy accident sculpture!

Leadership & Team

➡️ How would you describe your leadership style?

I’ll be honest, I like working by myself rather than leading a team. This is because I know how I want things done and can get frustrated if it doesn’t happen. Leadership is not my calling and I found this out during my stint as an Assistant Head. Very quickly!

Advice & Inspiration

➡️ Is there anyone you recommend people follow for great business advice?

If you’re into glass, then Jim Matthews aka Glasshoppa. However he is a creative rather than a businessman. Ryan Holliday is useful for business.

➡️ What’s one book you recommend every entrepreneur should read and why?

Surrounded by Idiots by Thomas Erikson. It broadly categorises people into personality types and I have found it invaluable for not only understanding myself [I am yellow with a blue streak and tiny hint of red], but also understanding how others view the world. This has been instrumental in being able to have empathy for others around me and to realise they aren’t being awkward – they’re just wired differently to me and once I know that, I can interact in their style and all is good. I have learned a huge amount about how to communicate more effectively.

➡️ Do you have any favourite quotes or philosophies that guide you?

My dad always used to say in his broad Black Country accent ‘Dow be a busy fool’, ie make sure you are making money in what you are doing, but my main one is ‘life is what you make it’. In other words if something in your business is not working, change it. Brene Brown also talks about Exquisite Risk – ie sometimes you need to put your neck on the block to get to the other side. If we are too risk adverse, we just stay where we are. And so it was when I left my safe salary! Putting my neck on the block resulted in me being so much happier and oddly, making not far off [so far at least] what I was making in school.

➡️ What’s the best piece of business advice you’ve ever been given?

Dow be a busy fool!!

Vision & Industry

➡️ What are your short-term goals for the business?

I am currently guesting at Made by Bayliss & Co and so there will come a time within the year when I will need to find my own premises. I am already looking as I know it will take some time, so if anyone knows of a small high street retail outlet going for rent, do let me know. I want to stay in Tenterden ideally because I am becoming established here, but will consider anywhere similar, like Rye.

➡️ What’s your vision or plan for the future of your business?

In around 3 years we will be moving permanently to Ireland, to Connemara where the glass is rooted. We will pick up Mara Amore and house it where it belongs. This is why I have a .ie domain name already. We went over a few weeks ago to start reccying it out and are still hooked on the Renvyle peninsular right at the edge of the world! If we can make Letterfrack work that would be great. Westport is a possibility although technically that is just over the border in Mayo rather than Connemara itself. It will evolve.

➡️ How do you see your industry evolving, and how are you preparing for it?

There are so many different processes for glass out there and I’m interested in learning more. I’m currently in conversations with Max Jaquard to do some training with him as he is on the cutting edge of what glass can do.

➡️ How do you see AI shaping the future of your industry, and how will you adapt?

I’m already using AI for website content – it does a great job. I don’t see it impacting my industry too much however as we are all handmade artists and that’s the USP. In fact there is a potential that the more AI takes over, the bigger the USP may be for handmade art. Only time will tell!

Business in Kent

➡️ Why did you choose to base and grow your business in Kent?

I’ve lived in Kent since 1998 and now live in Ashford.

➡️ How has being based in Kent helped your business?

There are some great artisans here and some lovely glass artists to learn from.

➡️ Does your business support any local charities or causes?

I will hopefully be part of the Creative Week at Homewood School and give back to the students there.

➡️ What’s your favourite local spot in Kent?

The sea! All of it!

Reader Perks

➡️ Any special offers or discounts you’d like to share with the Kent Business Newsletter readers?

Happy to offer a 5% discount on my work for KBN readers. Use the code C8N657J4. This will work in our online shop (click here) and in our shop in Tenterden. 1 coupon per user. Expires 31 December 2025.

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