AN entrepreneur from the North-East has been inspired by her daughter to set up a gifts business.

Claire Ramshaw, from Thornley, County Durham, has joined the growing number of entrants in the Northern Echo’s If We Can, You Can challenge.

Her business, Ava P, sells handcrafted gifts for occasions, from christenings and weddings to birthdays and anniversaries.

After working in London, Mrs Ramshaw recently returned to her native North- East to have daughter Ava Patricia, and also launch her business.

Mrs Ramshaw said: “Having Ava introduced me to the world of children’s gifts, however, I noticed that there seemed to be a lack of tasteful personalised products within the marketplace.

I had studied theatre costume at art college, in Edinburgh, where I developed a passion for fabrics and textiles and, after Ava was born, I started making personalised items, such as pram covers and bootees for my family and friends’ new babies.

“It was only a matter of time before I realised that I should start my own business and began building my confidence to launch Ava P.

“My husband, Keith, has been brilliant; he converted our garage to a work space and never grumbled when the dining room table got ruined under copious amounts of paint and glue.

“I’ve learnt a lot about business in a short space of time.

When I started, I knew next to nothing about marketing and websites, but I am so proud of what we’ve achieved.”

To enter the If We Can, You Can challenge, go to ifwecanyoucan.co.uk/challenge or call 0870-850-2233.