Meet the mother who launched innovative and sustainable party kit hire business in Northampton
Meet the mother who launched an innovative and sustainable party kit hire business in Northampton, which has saved more than 1,500 single use items from being purchased and thrown away so far.
Joely Martin founded Northampton Party Kits in February last year, which gives people across the town the opportunity to hire reusable tableware for parties and other events.
Joely is a registered member of the Party Kit Network, which is a national community movement to help reduce waste by offering hire services. They have been pivotal in providing the tools to help Joely get her venture up and running.
A party kit is a convenient solution for busy parents planning children’s parties as washing up is included in the hire price. They hire the kit, party and return it to be washed by Joely using her dishwasher, which is likely to be more affordable than buying the same number of single use alternatives.
Joely has the capacity to loan out her kits more regularly and she hopes this is welcomed by Northampton residents in helping them save time, money and waste.
This venture came about when Joely hosted her daughter’s fourth birthday party last January. She had not hosted a party for her before and with a passion for sustainability, she was conscious about making it as low waste as possible.
Having done her research into whether there were any kits available to hire nearby, Joely found one in the north of the county. She soon discovered the Party Kit Network and was inspired to launch her own offering just a month later.
Running a business was completely new to Joely but this work aligns with her day job in the sustainability sector. She is currently on maternity leave but will run Northampton Party Kits alongside her existing role.
When asked to summarise what Northampton Party Kits offers, Joely told the Chronicle & Echo: “This reusable party kit business offers plates, cups and tableware items so people can throw a party with less waste.
“Parents are busy and want convenience, and this is an easy solution and kinder to the planet. The angle for me is sustainability, but it makes life easier and convenience wins for parents.”
Joely can drop the kit off to customers or they can pick it up. After it is used at the party, it is packed back into the box, collected and dishwasher cleaned by Joely and is ready to use again by the next happy customer.
Northampton Party Kits operates across the town and surrounding villages, and it has been praised as one less thing to think about by those hosting events.
Joely is proud to have seen a problem, identified a solution and run with this concept, as saving 1,500 single use items from being purchased will snowball to have a bigger impact.
Joely is also going beyond reusable tableware to encourage more conscious gifting as an ambassador for the Kids Party Pact. This movement encourages low cost and sustainable kids parties, particularly by cutting the clutter and expense of excessive gifts and party bags.
“I would like the kits to be used a lot more and getting the word out there is still a challenge,” said Joely. “It’s mostly used for kids parties at the moment, but with more interest and hiring I could look to get a grown up’s kit for summer barbecues.”