Textile entrepreneur who wants us all to sleep better

But a Scottish luxury bedding firm is on a mission to let consumers know there is a way to enjoy a different version of this luxury fibre – and it might just give them a better night’s sleep.

Ava Innes is the idea of Joan Johnston, a leading textiles creative who in 20 years in the sector has worked with some of the biggest names in fashion.

Ms Johnston spent 17 years with Suffolk-based silk mill Stephen Walters & Sons, becoming the first female board member in its 300-year history, before venturing north to become creative director of Johnstons of Elgin.

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She discovered that around 70 per cent of the fibre brushed from cashmere goats every year is essentially wasted – and embarked on a mission to turn it into a sustainable fabric.

Ms Johnston, who grew up in Northern Ireland, has found a way to make commercial use of the long straight fibre that is considered too straight to be spun and, ultimately, unsuitable for clothing.

“I have always loved natural textile products made in the UK,” said Ms Johnston, who lives in the north of Scotland with her family.

“I spent two years at Johnstons, then I broke off in 2015 and went on a bit of a mission to create a sustainable product that was UK-made and would have benefits. This was really driven by awareness of some of the wastage in the industry and I wanted to do something about it.

“I looked at a number of different options and identified cashmere guard hair, which is the key ingredient in our product.”

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The guard hair comes from goats that are most commonly found in the dry and arid climates of Mongolia, China, and Afghanistan, the three main suppliers to the cashmere industry.

“That fibre has really been ignored by the traditional industry because it is too straight to spin, therefore you can’t knit or weave it,” Ms Johnston said.

The fibre is rich in keratin, which is known for its temperature-regulating qualities. Ms Johnston realised there might be an opportunity to make a sustainable fabric from it while also making a difference for the many people who struggle to get a good night’s sleep.

Two years of talks with manufacturers followed to explore whether the material could be used in duvets before a breakthrough was made. The duvets and pillows help people sleep better because the fibre adjusts to the temperature of the body. Ms Johnston now owns the patent for the insulating fabric.

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“That was quite a journey of determination and trial and error, to find a way to make a product that is now our key product and actually helps people to sleep better,” she said.

“That’s the technical aspect of how I started. It was from my knowledge of the industry but also my passion for wanting to do something that was good for people and good for the planet, because I really want to support manufacturing here. I have been a part of it for all my career.”

Ms Johnston said the company’s duvets and Scottish wool pillows are made in Yorkshire. For the pillows, Cheviot wool is sourced from the Borders, from where it is transported less than 200 miles to be cleaned and processed and made into pillows.

She notes the bulk of large-scale wool cleaning is all done in Yorkshire. “Sheep to sleep in under 200 miles”

is the company mantra, she said.

Ms Johnston launched Ava Innes in September 2019, six months before the Civid-19 pandemic took hold, and her initial plan was to target the Scottish tourism market with its cashmere-based bedding products. However, the outbreak of the pandemic forced a change of strategy.

“It is a sleep product that has strong sustainable credentials and we wanted to embrace the Scottish tourism market – the better end accommodation providers [and] boutique hotels,”

Ms Johnston said.

“Of course, they then closed their doors, so we needed to shift to putting everything online direct to consumers. And that actually was really good because it gave us a lot of very direct insight [from consumers] into the feedback we were getting. The feedback from that helped us as we moved forward.”

She added: “It’s been a challenge, but it’s been okay. It’s not quite where we wanted to be, but we still had year-on-year growth and continuous five-star reviews on our website and virtually no returns, which is amazing for an online business.”

The company is in the midst of a capital raising exercise that it hopes will bring in £150,000, having earmarked the funds to aid its push into the US market. Talks with potential investors, including Mint Ventures and an unnamed Global Scot, have been progressing well, with the company also enjoying a boost to its coffers by winning £20,000 in last week’s Scottish EDGE Awards.

However, the current priority is to make the most of demand for the Christmas season.  As well as bedding,  Ava Innes makes products such as cashmere socks and woollen blankets and throws.

Stockists include the Scottish Textile Showcase on St Mary’s Street, Edinburgh, and the Jacobite Cruise reception areas in Inverness. It also has a link-up with Glencraft Mattresses in Aberdeen.  “Although we launched in September 2019, everything went on hold,” Ms Johnston said. “Retail shops have been playing safe effectively and those stores are now starting  to open.  “I see that changing over the next year.”  The months from October to March are “definitely our key seasons”, Ms Johnston said, “because of the colder weather.  “People are more at home, are thinking more of staying warm and cosy. It will always be our biggest season. We are in full swing focusing on that at the minute.”  More broadly, Ms Johnston thinks Ava Innes has come along at the right time, given the increasing number of people who struggle to sleep, a problem she said has been “worsened by the pandemic.”   “The NHS released figures that one in three of the whole country are now struggling to sleep,” she said.

“That ranges from  mild sleepless nights to full-blown insomnia. It can be psychological, but it is also temperature regulating.”

Ms Johnston added that she has been pleased to witness the increasingly open public conversation around the menopause. Ava Innes has received feedback suggesting its duvets can help in this area, and is currently running trials to find  out more.

What countries have you most enjoyed travelling to, for business or leisure, and why?
Throughout the last 30 years, I have enjoyed extensive travel both for pleasure and business. Favourite destinations include exploring both islands of New Zealand, while business trips to the US inevitably included the opportunity to visit the Grand Canyon by helicopter, the Rockies in Colorado, sailing out of San Diego, whale watching off the Monterey coast.
 
When you were a child, what was your ideal job? Why did it appeal? 
Growing up in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, I knew there was another world out there to explore, so was always keen to travel. Naturally, I had a design interest and originally planned to be a photographer, but the thought of doing only wedding photographs put me off.
 
What was your biggest break in business? 
Winning a Royal Society of Art award on graduating led me to my first job.
 
What was your worst moment in business? 
Announcing redundancy for a small number of my design team, 
whom I had worked with for more than 
10 years. Thankfully, those ready to retire came forward, though we lost some talented designers.
 
Who do you most admire and why? 
I admire real people who are true to their values, have strong character and are comfortable with themselves.
 
What book are you reading and what music are you listening to? 
My reading time is usually spent on content that inspires me around people, new ethical brands and business practice.
I have an eclectic music taste, from Skerryvore and Kodaline to Coldplay, Taylor Swift and David Gray.