Sunday 28 February 2016

Meet The Maker - Rock The Bump

We interviewed Zoe Keeping from Rock The Bump - Pregnant Belly and Body Casting. 

Introduce yourself and your business:
My name is Zoё, I am a work at home mum to two young children and Owner/Artist of Bournemouth based business - ‘Rock the Bump – pregnant belly and body casting’. Rock the Bump works with mums-to-be to create a bespoke, artistic, keepsake of their pregnancy.

When did you start your small business and why?
I found out about belly casting when I was pregnant with my second baby in 2013. I wasn't aware of anyone offering pregnant belly casting locally so got all the kit together so hubby and I could create one ourselves. As is often the case with DIY casting kits we just never got around to doing the casting before baby arrived. A year later I started to explore the idea of creating belly casts for other expectant mums and Rock the Bump was born!


Is your business a full time, part time or spare time operation?
As a work at home with two under 5s (and number 3 on the way!) every day is different as I juggle to fit in my "bump work" (as my two little ones call it!) alongside everything else. Weekends are when I get the most time to focus on Rock the Bump, often seeing clients for casting sessions on Saturdays and spending time in the studio on Sundays getting messy - strengthening and smoothing casts, painting, finishing and preparing casts ready for clients to hang/display in their homes.

What was your most memorable keepsake made?
Last year I had the pleasure of casting Rebecca’s pregnant belly with her husband’s and 4-year-old son’s hands cradling her beautiful bump. This was really special as Rebecca’s husband works abroad so was only home for a very short time to see the birth of his baby and we were lucky to be able to create the cast just in time! I relish the opportunity to work with women and their partners to create custom design, artistic pregnant belly casts that are personal to them, often incorporating artwork that evokes memories not just of their pregnancy but of the life and love they shared before the arrival of their precious newborn baby.

What is your most affordable item?
Prices start from as little as £35 for a basic belly only cast. Customers can then opt for plain, classic, deluxe or custom options to include strengthening of the cast with high grade casting plaster, smoothing and painting/artwork and varnishing. Price is very much dependent on individual requirements based on time and materials involved.



What short term goals do you have your your business?
My focus at the moment is improving my Social Media presence on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, interacting more with my followers, starting a blog and increasing the visibility of my posts to help spread the word and reach more customers.

What is your long term goal for your business?
So far, I've had the pleasure of casting beautiful baby bumps from Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch to Salisbury, Basingstoke, and Wiltshire with bookings already confirmed for April for two lovely mums-to-be from Surrey and London! Ultimately I would like to see the Rock the Bump brand grow and become the go-to pregnant belly casting studio for all expectant mums.

And now for some fun questions...

City or Countryside? Bit of both. I grew up in the countryside but love Bournemouth as it offers the best of both worlds.

Custard or Cream? Custard.

Cats or Dogs? Both.

Tea or Coffee? Black coffee all the way - needs must…

Facebook, Twitter or Instagram? Facebook – I still struggle to keep it brief on Twitter and Instagram but am getting there…slowly!

Reading a book or watching a film? Neither – I used to love both but have the attention span of a gnat since having children, plus there’s never any time!


Obsessively Tidy or Organised Chaos? Organised chaos…

If you want to see more from Zoe, visit the website or Facebook Page

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