Jo Weller has created reusable gift tokens that have the look and feel of a special present.
Jo owns Jojangles in Camborne – an award-winning town centre shop that specialises in handmade jewellery, gifts and cards.
As the recipient of one of more than 100 grants given to local businesses as part of Camborne Town Deal’s Project A-Void, Jo bought new sewing and embroidery machines to expand her range of stock. She also uses them to produce small pouches for the gift tokens.
“A voucher is a nice gift but it’s flat and can be forgotten – whereas these pouches make a great gift as they contain the illusion of coins that can be kept in a bag or pocket,” said Jo.
“The tokens were a simple idea that I developed after a conversation with a friend who had a 3D printer. They’re a great way of recycling as they can be used over and over again.”
Jojangles has won Camborne’s Best Local Business title for the last two years and Jo is pleased with its growth and development.
“I opened the shop after several years attending markets and events like the weekly Camborne Square produce market,” she said.
“Camborne is a friendly town, and I’ve had a lot of support from my customers and friends.
“The town deal development grant enabled me to buy the equipment I needed to create more products like memory bears, glasses cases, doorstops, Cornish tartan items and so much more.
“This Christmas I made a large hare doorstop as the prize in a raffle I’m holding to raise money for Marie Curie South West and, so far, more than 200 tickets have been sold at a cost of £1 each.”
BID Camborne manages Project A-Void, one of ten Camborne Town Deal projects worth a total of £23.7m in government funding.
“Camborne has a long and proud history of invention and Jo’s gift tokens follow that tradition,” said Anna Pascoe, BID Camborne Manager.
“Each coin has a chip inside it so it can’t be reproduced and, when a customer cashes it in, the token can be used for someone else.
“It’s wonderful that the business grant Jo received has helped fund this innovation and the BID team wishes her continued success going forward.”
