A menswear designer, who was one of the first to move into Northampton's Vulcan Works, has praised the workspace for establishing ‘a hub of creatives' that has helped him to grow his business.
Matt Goddard founded MJ Goddard Design Consultancy in 2021 after working in fashion for 18 years. Setting up his own business has enabled Matt to work as a freelance fashion designer and consultant for brands including Primark, TU, Tesco and George. He predominantly designs casual menswear and acts as a conduit between manufacturers, factories and retailers all over the world.
Working on his own, Matt has found taking an office at Vulcan Works in February last year has proved invaluable to his business.
He said: "I heard about Vulcan Works through a friend and registered my interest before it officially opened. I really like the concept of being based at a hub for creatives and there being a cross pollination of people working in similar creative industries.
"Now I have a 145 square foot office with two desks and a floor to ceiling window which provides me with lots of natural light, which is perfect for what I do."
Matt also met fellow Vulcan Works tenant Catherine Wise, a fashion print designer. Catherine specialises in contemporary prints that are hand drawn and painted and then manipulated through CAD software to create production ready designs.
"Meeting Cat has been brilliant,"
said Matt. "We often catch up to collaborate and give feedback on each other's designs. We've also passed on contacts to each other."
Matt has also attended a variety of workshops and networking events and benefited from the on-site support provided by business growth manager Darren Smith, who has helped him to review contracts.
Looking to the future, Matt has set his sights on creating his own brand of clothing.
"Working on my own from a home studio previously, it has made such a difference to my business to have a professional space to work in. I can now separate my home and work life and be much more focussed,"
adds Matt.
"I want to continue to build and grow my business at Vulcan Works through more collaborations, reinforcing current partnerships and creating new ones. I also have plans to expand and launch my own clothing brand."
To find out more about Vulcan Works or request a show around, email info@vulcanworks.co.uk or visit vulcanworks.co.uk. To find out more about MJ Goddard Design Consultancy, email matt@mjgoddard.co.uk.