XOandQuin

Me, less than a month into 2024...

I've also only been back in the "real world" for 3 days. It's technically two because it's the morning today

XOandQuin, the summary or last chapter: this is long so swipe >>

I've struggled with posting about this, however I have now legally begun the CVA procedure, the final part of my journey as XOandQuin has begun.

Genuinely though, I feel like this isn't how I expected things to turn out, this isn't how I had planned it, but I am actually looking forward to the future

XOandQuin was a little business I made at the foot of my tiny bedroom five years ago. XO are the intials of my eldest son, Xavier and Quin is Joaquin.

When I started this business, I was a small business, I was my business, my identity was linked to my business, I was the soul and heartbeat, which is possibly how this mess came about

I am now a business owner, I am also a mum to three children. We are not the same person, we are not connected, so it is time to let go of the past and move onto the future, as the person that I am now

closed from Thursday for the summer! get 15% off all orders over £10 + free standard shipping on all orders over £40 to UK addresses!

XOandQuin.co.uk
coupon code: HOLIYAY15

offer valid until close on Thursday, August 24th.

one star wednesday is baaaaaack!!! there are SO many things to unpack here...

1. this customer works in some sort of healing arts (part of their company name), to create a 'safe sacred space for people'

2. "who doesn't provide tracking?" - well hun, when you choose untracked at checkout, it generally means that there is no tracking to provide

3. when the last email came in, I obvs went for a little stalk before responding, AS i was staking their IG (not ashamed), the page literally disappeared as I was viewing it, so obvs I switched to my personal.....which worked for about 3 mins, til that disappeared too (got some other people in the office to check....not ashamed, and yeah the customer managed to find my personal account and block it, impressive)

moral(s) of the story:

a. you are given a finite number of f***s each day, you must use them wisely

i wanted to reply with the standard "okeee doey" however this would use up a precious f**k, she did not deserve it

b. you never know what other people are going through, don't be a dick

this type of interaction happens on a weekly, if not daily basis, I literally don't understand how i attract this type of customer/energy, this was the first work task i picked up after my dad passed on june 01, i probably should not have returned to work so soon, but you actually never know what other people are going through, I felt pretty sympathetic towards her as I was pretty raw still, the final message was totally out of the blue.

c. you CAN NOT make one rule for one person and break it for another

if you have a rule you have to stick it and apply it to everyone, it's the fairest thing for all involved, even if it doesn't always feel like it or you feel like you want to bend it for someone (we're human), it also maintains consistent expectations, i have bent rules for people in the past, it usually backfires, give an inch, they take a mile

above all else, isn't fair to those who read and stick to rules and don't question them, these are the people you will never hear from, they will never complain and will never act like this, you will never be able to thank them because you will probably never interact with them

Blow up dolls, hackney spring water, eco friendly packaging supplies for quality objects d'art

XOandQuin.co.uk
Independent trading co
New York • Paris • Hackney

Just showing my face to show that I am still here, still holding on, just about

---

In the past few months, I've been through legal with my last landlord, it's still not resolved and the legal fees are racking up fast

I've had personal stuff too, just to make life even more fun. Oh and school holidays now, don't even go there.

Some of you may have noticed that all the b2c bits like cards and wedding stuff has disappeared from the website (and Etsy store) and quantities on the website are geared more towards business buying

I took a step back and learnt to let go of the toxic side of hustle culture, after being forced to take nearly a month off in June. Guess what it was fine (ish)

I separated myself from my business, and objectively looked at how the B2B and B2C sides had grown, and started slowly to pull everything apart

It's hard because when you start a business it's essentially your life, identity and an actual baby that you nurture and pour your everything into.

Trust me though, babies are easier, I birthed 3 of them and this business that was named after the two kids I had at the time - XO (Xavier's initals) and Quin (Joaquin) - and it's not cus I'm Chinese, I'm Thai (actually was asked this by a customer, who phoned to check I wasn't Chinese before she ordered, anyway I digress)

I know loads of small businesses are struggling, every week I see a post about someone being forced to close.

We're very close to being forced to close, our reason happens to be a s**tty set of circumstances - everything everywhere all at once.

I'll keep going as XOandQuin until I'm forced to stop, then I'll come back and just do it again.

Because I run a business, as a job, it doesn't run me and it's not my life or identity (anymore)

Wow that was long - might start posting more unsolicited life advice nobody asked for, who knows. But for the time being, I'm still here ❤️

we've been falling out of stock A LOT recently of our clear biodegradable display bags!

this is because we manufacture them ourselves in a super secret lair in the UK, lead time is around 8-12 weeks and we consistently under estimate demand 😳

we have a custom print on our lips which means that we can spot our bags out in the wild, and it's super fun to find them on market stalls locally or spot them on people's grids!

we're back in stock of nearly all sizes now, but we are also now stocking a generic brand to tide you over for when we're out of stock - manufacturing ourselves means we can keep our prices low, with low MOQs of 50 units - 50 x C7 bags are just £3.40 inc VAT!

custom sizing available, get your own printed lips from just 5K units - email [email protected] for a quote!

been a while since we did a customer feature! how amazing are these sticker packs by

Amy is based in Newcastle upon Tyne and makes fun stationery gifts, all packaged in plastic free packaging, we just LOVE how she's customised our glassine envelopes

visit amy's store here: https://www.amymariah.co.uk/

thank you for the tag Amy - what do you package in yours?

glassine bags are made from pure pine cellulose (paper), all paper stock for our envelopes come from PEFC managed forests and they are 100% recyclable, at curbside (in your mixed or paper waste), biodegradable + compostable - it only takes 2 to 6 weeks to decompose, so our most eco packaging product!

the only thing we suck more at than IG is facebook....

so for the time being, if you want an exclusive discount code for May 2023, head over to our IG and click the link in our profile for FREE UK SHIPPING on all orders over £23

*disclaimer we are only on IG + FB

👉 xoandquin.co.uk/insta

wondering what size glassine bags you need? i spent waaaaay too long making this size guide

p.s. check our profile for an exclusive insta discount code that gets you free shipping for all uk orders in may 2023....when you spend over £23

👉 instagram.com/xoandquin/

f**k me - may has basically been 3 day weeks for me, not cus i rock and i can afford to take the time off, but teacher strikes, bank holidays, breakfast wine....

thank you for these dead good photos of our dead good stickers

quick reminder all orders placed on Friday, after 2pm will be shipped on Tuesday 9th. may the force with with your liver, it's basically friday today, probably time for wine....

apparently when you add your face to an IG post it helps with the algothinggy. I had a scroll and I haven't added my face for a while, so hi, it's me! Taz, I run the circus that is and we're proud to be able to sponsor .

Each purchase contributes towards an annual bursary which allows a child from a low income family to access football coaching - grass roots schemes like this often help kids to later access work in the industry.

if you're in hackney I HIGHLY recommend this school, cus it's a drop off, and the girls are waaaaay better than the boys (before anyone says anything I have 2 boys - that's XO (Xavier's initials) and Quin (Joaquin) and a small girl child who only does ballet)

so here i am, with a pineapple, cus I didn't have an avocado or puppy (both of which apparently are good for the gram) - now I've posted this I realise a football would have been more appropriate

so in a cheesy support small business type of way - your purchase pays for a kid to play football, it's just not one of mine, although one of mine does....I'm also saving for a so i can take Portia to ballet in style.

nice to meet you! Taz x

ok i voted myself the best glassine supplier in the UK...but that's neither here nor there, I'm 100% the best and cheapest in my postcode, probably hackney

swipe for sizes + prices ➡️

s**t how is it easter already?! opening times and a quick and eco friendly easter egg hunt basket/easter bunny delivery - use a recyclable cup and whack a sticker on, boom! 🐰

easter stickers from 70p per sheet and cups also available in store - widely recyclable, unlike other disposable cups on the market, can be disposed of in paper waste

neidio ar y bandwagon....me using google translate to jump on the bandwagon

every f**ker is printing these, so i might as well offer them too if you can't be bothered to faff around with the files yourself

the new collection, like the last one, has personalised and ready to ship options! ready to ship options will be available in the uk and usa on amazon prime

shop new collection >> https://xoandquin.co.uk/product-tag/xoqsm/

nothing says happy birthday (a month late, maybe it was more...hope it wasn't more) like a pint of larger, pack of silk slt and a "super s**t and super f**king late" card - sorry jackie, or......maybe it's super early for next year?!

**tcards

not going to lie, i was getting pretty sick of seeing the same font over and over, it's been a long time coming, but a new collection is being rolled out

https://xoandquin.co.uk/product-tag/xoqsm/

🍔 food grade, complies with UK, EU, FDA and USDA regulations for food contact, handy peel + self seal tabs
🌎 sustainable - PEFC certified, plastic free 100% paper, proudly manufactured in the UK
♻️ widely recyclable at curb side, with paper waste, compostable + biodegradable
📦 available in packs of 50, 1000, 5000 - shipping worldwide, USA in 3 working days

✍️ custom allergen tick box labels - all 14 main UK allergens as outlined on the food standards site, space to add any extra random ones, prep date, best before date and cross contamination warning

♻️ FSC certified paper stickers, plastic free - biodegradable, compostable + widely recyclable including backing paper (traditional backing paper is siliconised, so not really recyclable)

🛒 shop now: xoandquin.co.uk

🐾 best dog ever for remembering mother's day 🐾

sunday march 19th - £3.80, free UK 1st class shipping

please note: all cards ship royal mail 1st class, any cards purchased with any other products, there's an automatic discount of £1.34 applied to your card at checkout (face value of the coupon) - we'll dispatch your order with the method you select at checkout, full details available on xoandquin.co.uk

*brand new garment bags* compostable, conform EN 13432 standard, suitable for food contact, proudly manufactured in a UK factory.

beautifully modelled by the shirt....did we mention we're proud sponsors?

free samples, limited to one per person, low MOQ - packs of 25, 50, 100, 500 or 1,000 available

every year i pin super cute paddy's day ideas.....then never do any of them

custom message rainbow stickers, prices from 80p per sheet or £2.25 for a one off personalised sheet!

might use up some of the left over gold coins from lunar new year for these, waste not want not ☘️

product drop - biodegradable paper packing tape! prices from just £1.50 a roll (when you buy 12) or £2.95 for single rolls

Get a FREE roll when you spend over £60 this weekend!*

♻️ made from paper, natural rubber adhesive - biodegradable + recyclable
💪 strong enough to seal heavy boxes, but can be hand torn and fits standard dispensers and guns
✍️ can be written on

No coupon required, automatically added to cart, valid on international orders, offer ends Sunday November 26th, 23:00 GMT

this should fix those one star 'smaller than a normal card' reviews....

did you know at ramadan money envelopes are given, just like a hong boa during lunar new year?

children don't need to fast over ramadan, but they do join in the fast breaking meal or iftar from a young age. glassine envelopes are the eco choice for money envelopes, and packaging little bags of sweets for children over ramadan

food grade, biodegradable, compostable, recyclable + proudly made in the UK

that time work wife had a new baby so i made her a funny card, then the s**t hit the fan so the card was inappropriate, but by the time i sent her the card it was appropriate again, so i named the card after her kid

collection id "xoqru"

https://xoandquin.co.uk/product/funny-new-baby-card/

FRIDAY FUNDAY WITH - help us choose our next product to launch, just comment with the number corresponding to the product you'd most like to see below 👇🏾

🎁 if we launch the product, we'll send you a pack for free*

✍️ terms + conditions

❌ this competition is for a bit of fun and market research, not affiliated with IG or FB or anything like that.

⌛ there's no current end date really, but the first of these products will be launched by the end of february 2023, when this post will be updated and a winner picked

💬 winners will be notified by DM, we reserve the right to pick a new winner if we've not heard back from you within 5 working days.

🍆 don't be a dick, blah blah blah

*smallest pack size we offer, offer open worldwide.

https://xoandquin.co.uk/ramadan-gifts-gifts-on-eid/ramadan is on the way! shop the eid and ramadan collections out now! glassine envelopes + sticker kits, eco friendly sweet cone alternatives, or money, personalised stickers - add them to your handmade gifts or iftar packs >> https://xoandquin.co.uk/ramadan-gifts-gifts-on-eid/