Student who started Pampas & Bloom dried flowers business during lockdown launches first shop in Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley

Instead she ended up opening her first shop here in Leeds - and all before she’d even graduated.

Amelia Harker, 21, was at her parents home in Roundhay when the idea for Pampas & Bloom was formed in March 2020.

Before lockdown, her sister Louisa had been on a work trip to Copenhagen, in Denmark, where she had noticed a rise in popularity for dried flowers.

“We saw a few florists here in England but no online ones, just odd place with a selection and not offering a huge choice,” Amelia says.

“We're both super creative and always want something to do. We are like famous in our family for always having business ideas which fall flat on their face, but this one obviously was different.

“We ordered some like cardboard boxes and started with about 10 bunches that we sold through Instagram stories.

“After they all sold, we thought, ‘well what now? We should probably put another order in’ so I put another in for quite a few flowers - and Louisa left the country.“

As the business got going, Louisa moved back to Australia to be with her partner. Now on her own, but undeterred, Amelia decided to continue what they’d started, with some help from mum Susan.

Initially selling her selection of furnishings via Instagram, the brand soon saw huge success, launching a website before opening a shop in Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley.

Amelia, a third year product and furniture design student at Kingston University, said: “Instagram was just so convenient at the time.

“We put a picture up and just said ‘DM to buy’ so that's where we started, and then once we've gained enough traction I think we had about 1000 followers, and I decided to launch the website.”

After a year of having their home filled with flowers and boxes, the Harker family decided to have a look for a brick and mortar shop.

They initially looked in Chapel Allerton but it wasn't meant to be, and then mum Susan spotted a vacancy at Sunny Bank Mills, in Farsley.

“At this point, we were spread across like three bedrooms and a garage.

“There were two offices available and we ended up going for the bigger one, which I am glad about as we have completely filled the space.

“I'm going back to university in September so I am going to tie my final projects into the shop.

“I'm hoping my final project will be a collection of vases as I get endless enquiries about the vases we use to showcase the flowers but I don't have the skills or the right contacts to be able to produce them on a bigger scale.

“That's the next plan, as well as offering workshops.

“It’s nice after being online to actually know that we have a local audience and people are interested in what we're up to.

“It's a good community feel.”

Pampas & Bloom is the latest addition to the Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley.

A former textile mill, the Gaunt family began redeveloping and regenerating the mills in 2010.

John Gaunt, co-managing director, said: “We now have beauticians, hair salons, cafes, restaurants, a yoga studio and a massage studio, all providing a variety of services for the many companies who are now based here.

“It is this attractive offer, which we work so hard to achieve, that makes Sunny Bank Mills not just a wonderful place to work but also a great place to visit and spend time at as well.”