BRAND DNA
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BRAND VALUES
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BRAND LOOK & FEEL
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BRAND EXPERIENCE
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BUILDING COMMUNITY
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TOP TIPS
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BUSINESS THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
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FINDING YOUR AUDIENCE
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BRAND DNA ✳︎ BRAND VALUES ✳︎ BRAND LOOK & FEEL ✳︎ BRAND EXPERIENCE ✳︎ BUILDING COMMUNITY ✳︎ TOP TIPS ✳︎ BUSINESS THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ✳︎ FINDING YOUR AUDIENCE ✳︎
WHO ARE WE &
what do we know…
In 2020 we launched our own small, independent brand - Irregular Sleep Pattern - with a strong idea but very little knowledge or experience of how to run a business. Through a combination of grit, determination and passion we are still here, but its been a rough ride and much of what we have learned did not seem to be readily accessible when we needed it most.
We can’t claim to have a definitive guarantee for sucess - we are STILL a small, independent brand (and like it that way) - but we have come across some very useful things, and Irregular Business School was devised as a mechanism to share this knowledge & experience.
As you will guess from our name, we are not trying to compete with corporate business advisors. IBS (yes, we know…) is indeed focused on helping those with ambition to do their own thing, but who perhaps feel uneasy in the world of… business?
Ambitious dreamers, first-time entrepreneurs, small business owners having a crisis of confidence, visionaries with imposter syndrome… welcome to our world!
Hi, I'm Mil.
Designer, educator, DAD & recovering would-be pop star.
I started late, enrolling at Art School at the ripe old age of 27 because I was interested in the world of ‘stuff’ and recognised that the main reason things work well (or not) is down to design.
Having studied product design at Glasgow School of Art and the Royal College of Art, I have spent the last 25 years working with corporate clients in the world of fashion, food & drink and retail as well as non-profit organisations, cultural institutions and government agencies.
My workhas been worn on the feet of Italian footballers, drunk in bars, featured as a question on BBC's University Challenge and spent time in prison. What ties them together is a common approach, which always starts by looking for the underlying DNA at the heart of each project. No matter what the context, the challenge remains the same - to find & recognise this essence and use it as the hook to tell a good story.
Alongside my design practice I've taught part time at Glasgow School of Art for over 20 years, and since 2020 have been building my own brand Irregular Sleep Pattern with my wife Jolene — literally practising what I preach.
Hi, I’m Jolene. Entrepreneur, Community Builder, Activist & Mother.
A former arts TV producer, turning 40 was a wake-up call for me in terms of my career - I just knew I didn’t want to spend another decade in an industry that expected crazy working hours + routinely tolerated bad behaviour, so I persuaded Mil that together we had the skillset to launch the business we had fantasised about starting. Nine years later and our brand of bedding, sleepwear + homewares Irregular Sleep Pattern has a cult following and has made us friends around the world.
Since our 2020 launch we have managed to steadily grow our brand in one of the hardest economic climates in recent history, and if it hadn't been for the solid brand foundation we built before launching, I don't think we would have survived. Another critically important factor in our success has been my own growth as a human: I've built support structures that allow me to cope with the many bumps in the road that are inevitable when you run your own business.
So in this portal, I will be teaching (alongside Hayley) the Business Basics course. As well as helping you get your head around website, email marketing + social media, I’ll be sharing advice on all the stuff that “regular” courses don’t legitimise: showing up authentically, protecting yourself from the rollercoaster of emotions involved in being an entrepreneur, working on your mindset (probably the most important skill you can learn), trusting your gut and more.
I’m so excited to have designed a course I wish had existed when I started learning ‘how to do business’ - welcome!
HI, I’M HAYLEY.
FASHION DESIGNER TURNED MARKETEER, MINIMALIST & TechNo aficionado
Following my masters in fashion design at Glasgow School of Art I ran by own brand for 8 years, designing and making everything myself. I’d built up a loyal following, and loved the hands on element of actually making things, but in 2024 felt it was time for a new challenge, and started working with Jolene + Mil at Irregular Sleep Pattern… marketing, product development and whatever else needs doing - it’s all hands on deck!
Since joining ISP, our turnover has increased by almost 70% in a year which is particularly exciting in this economic climate. It has been so interesting learning how to market a different style of brand - from my designer/maker model to one where everything is designed in house but manufactured elsewhere.
In this portal, I will be sharing advice on the marketing basics you NEED to know whether you are brand new to your business idea, or simply feeling overwhelmed and need to know how and what to prioritise.
I’ve been where you are, and I understand!
