People’s Champion Finalist: Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium Introducing our People’s Champion contender Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium, the unique start-up already proving a success in East London Written by Natasha Mc Gowan Published on October 20, 2014 Our experts We are a team of writers, experimenters and researchers providing you with the best advice with zero bias or partiality. Written and reviewed by: Natasha Mc Gowan Founder: Lauren Pears, 32 Started in: 2014 Based in: London Business description: A tea room an online store for cat lovers The Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium story:Though the company only launched this year, Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium is proving to be a huge success with Londoners having been fully booked since opening in March and successfully doubling its turnover. Unusual and unique, the business acts as a venue, running events and allowing visitors to enjoy a peaceful cup of tea but surrounded by cats. The company also sells cat-centric merchandise through its bricks-and-mortar, and online store. Founder Lauren Pears believes the business will grow beyond initial demand as it has a strong and dedicated team – who Pears describes as “instrumental” in the business’ success, not least because they listen to their customers. The cat loving team plan to continue the business success by responding to changes in the market and target return custom over novelty-seeking ones. And so far this has proved successful with return customers and happy reviews increasing every month. And it seems we’re not the only ones to recognise the business’ potential. To open its space near Shoreditch Lady Dinah’s ran a successful crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo, raising £109,510. Since opening Lady Dinah’s the cat loving haven has generated a huge fan base – with 70,000 followers on its social media platforms and coverage in a number of national press publications, including Wired, Time Out London and The Independent.Why Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium made our 50:Lady Dinah’s made it as a finalist because it has proved that there is high demand for the quirky, which has translated into increased turnover and repeat customers since launching. The fundraising also served to bring attention to the extraordinary level of interest in a concept centred around cats.Where to find out more about Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium:Website: http://ladydinahs.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/LadyDinahsCats Facebook: www.facebook.com/LadyDinahsCatEmporium Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/ladydinahs/ Share this post facebook twitter linkedin Written by: Natasha Mc Gowan