Alumna enterprise duo design postcards to help the public reach out to their loved ones

Pickle illustration postcards: 'Take care' a woman watering houseplants and 'Sending sunshine' a sun with a smiling face.

A small business founded by a current student and an alumna just over one year ago has added quirky postcards to their online shop to help the public stay in touch with their loved ones and keep one another in positive spirits during this period of social distancing, as well as raising money for the NHS.

Lauren Jefferis and Olivia Collins are the co-founders of Pickle Illustration. As freelance illustrators, they offer design services for merchandise, product packaging, print and digital channels, as well as mural designs and hosting creative workshops.

In addition, they have an online shop for their products which now includes two limited edition postcards recently designed to bring people together with a personal touch, at a time when members of the public have not been able to spend time with their friends and family due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

As part of the purchase of a postcard – which is priced from £2 – Pickle Illustrations will handwrite the customer’s personalised message and post it on their behalf to the recipient.

The duo has also decided to donate 10% of all the profits made from the postcards to the NHS.

Lauren and Olivia commented: “We wanted to develop a way for people to reach out to one another that was an alternative to a text message or a video chat. We chose postcards as it’s a physical way of showing you're thinking about someone, as well as giving them something illustrated for them to put up in their house.

“For the price of meeting up with a loved one for coffee, we thought it would be a good idea if you could send them a personalised message on a postcard which we will write and send for you, so you don't have to. To show our appreciation for healthcare workers we also wanted to make sure we could make it possible to donate 10% of all profits to the NHS.”

Pickle Illustration is supported by the University’s Loughborough Enterprise Network through their Evolve Programme, which is supported by Santander Universities and provides specialist training sessions and advice to students running a business, working self-employed or freelancing.

The postcards - 'Sending sunshine' and 'Take care' - are available to buy online here.