“I know how much you Scots love to craft,” laughs Sara Davies, the sassy Teeside mam-of-two whose penchant for crocheting with her grandma was her hook into her multi-million-pound craft empire.
As vivacious over the phone as she comes across on BBC Two’s Dragon’s Den – and on BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing last year – the 38-year-old entrepreneur can’t hold back her excitement as she talks 10 to the dozen about her upcoming visit to the Granite City with her Christmas crafting show next week.
“I’m so excited to be coming as far as Aberdeen with the show,” says Sara, who was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to the economy.
“I remember saying to the tour manager make sure I’m going right up to the top mind.
“One of my friends from uni lived in Aberdeen and I remember once making the intrepid journey all the way up by train.
“I spent the whole weekend there and she was so passionate about the area so she showed me around and I just loved it so I’m really looking forward to it.
“I’ve actually arranged to arrive a little bit earlier on the day so we can spend the afternoon there enjoying Aberdeen.”
‘It’s going to be the best night’
Spirited by nature, Sara’s salt-of-the-earth personality is infectious as she animatedly chats about Craft Your Christmas, the interactive craft show she’s bringing to The Music Hall on Saturday December 10.
From gifts and garlands to cards and crackers, Sara says she can’t wait to get on stage to share plenty of practical demonstrations and creative ideas.
“I just think that there’s so many people out there who would love to be creative but they maybe just don’t know where to start so I thought, I’ve picked up all of these tips, tricks and hacks along the way and I’m going to share that with everyone,” says Sara.
“I promise you it’s going to be the best night.
“Everybody has got some creative juices somewhere and I always think that Christmas is the one times of the year that everyone just wants to have a go at crafting.”
£34m business
During the show Sara will also share fascinating stories about her life which changed forever at the age of 21 when an envelope-making tool she created for card makers turned into a £34 million business.
“Do you know, a lot of people just want a little insight into what my life looks like at Christmas, you know, what does my home look like, what was it like for me as a kid growing up,” says Sara.
“They just want to be inspired.
“I’ll also be doing a bit of dancing and singing – getting people up on their feet.
“It’s going to be a fantastic night.”
From Dragons’ Den to the ballroom
With her vibrant persona and burgeoning business acumen, it wasn’t long before Sara caught the eye of BBC bosses and joined the likes of Deborah Meaden, Peter Jones, Tej Lalvani and Touker Suleyman on BBC Two’s Dragons’ Den.
She is the programme’s youngest-ever female investor and has made over £1.1million of investments on the show.
“I just love it, it’s such a privilege to be on Dragons’ Den,” says Sara.
“I’ve done four series so that’s nearly 400 pitches I’ve had from entrepreneurs.
“It’s an incredible show to be a part of and what you’ve got to remember is that it’s real life, it’s not orchestrated for TV in any way.”
Reluctant to say who her favourite dragon is, Sara eventually caves in.
“Uncle Touker as he has just looked out for me from the second I came in that den,” says Sara.
“They’ve all really taken me under their wings but him especially.”
Strictly Come Dancing
From the boardroom to the ballroom, Sara sashayed her way on to our TV screens last year when she was chosen as one of the celebrities to appear on BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing.
Describing it as “incredible”, Sara is still on a high after her sequin-studded stint on the hit BBC show where she was partnered up with fan favourite Aljaz Skorjanec.
“If it looked like I was having a great time, trust me it was 10 times better,” says Sara.
“It was the most incredible experience of my life.”
Since the show, Sara, her husband Simon and their children Oliver and Charlie, have become firm friends with Aljaz and his wife Janette Manrara, who was also a professional dancer on the show.
“Aljaz and Janette are even nicer in real life.
“When we were training for Strictly, Aljaz was essentially living up north.
“I didn’t want him being in a hotel on his own so he used to come round and have dinner with the family and even my husband developed this incredible friendship with Aljaz.
“During that time he would bring Janette up quite a lot so we became friends too.”
Strictly family
In fact, their friendship is so strong that Sara and her family have been on holiday together with the couple.
“Aljaz was in the pool with the kids about eight times a day and Janette was playing Monopoly and Uno with them so they’re not friends anymore they’re literally an extension of our family they have just become so close to all of us.
“They are the most incredible couple, I love spending time with them.”
To book
Craft Your Christmas with Sara Davies is at Aberdeen’s Music Hall on Saturday December 10 at 7.30pm.
For tickets go to the website www.aberdeenperformingarts.com or call 01224 641122.
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