Celebrity Juice star, Leigh Francis (as Keith Lemon) has today announced his brand ambassadorship deal with UK craft retailer, Create and Craft, as the craft market in the UK explodes. Lemon is a passionate crafter who recently starred in a prime-time Channel 4 six-part series, The Fantastical Factory of Curious Craft.
His appointment comes as the UK’s obsession with crafting has seen exponential growth in the past year. The UK craft industry has seen a four-fold increase* in total craft sales between 2006 and 2020 and craft now contributes over £3.4bn to the UK economy. In a significant shift, there is also evidence that the demographic of the craft consumer is changing. Almost a third of consumers are now under 35.
The recent lockdown has highlighted the growing craft trend with new shows like Lemon’s The Fantastical Factory of Curious Craft being commissioned and the BBC’s Great Sewing Bee moving to a prime-time slot with audiences close to 5 million.
Jamie Martin, CEO of Create and Craft, commented: “To say craft is having a resurgence would be an understatement. We have seen the industry explode in recent years and the recent lockdown has only added to this growth. Younger people are now crafting for the first time and we know that working with Keith Lemon will ultimately help us reach a vast and highly engaged younger audience.”
Lemon will work closely with the team at Create and Craft to create and deliver engaging digital content packages across its YouTube and Instagram channels, starting with Keith Lemon’s Crafty Doings, a 2 x 6 part crafting how-to series created by Lemon broadcast exclusively on Create and Craft’s YouTube channel, which will be released this month. Keith Lemon commented: “Create and Craft is the best place for crafters like me t’ get their fix. If it was a car it’d be a right good’un! If it was lady, it’d be me dream lady. If it was a fashion label it’d be the most stylish. Of all the ranges it’s top of the rage! I’m actually chuffed to be working with ‘em. I’m gonna create some RAD pieces of crafty doings with some of the best materials in’t business!
I’m obviously more known for being ‘im off telly. But when I’m not being ‘im off telly’ I do a lot of crafting as you’ll see over the next few months. At the beginning of lockdown people ran out and bulk bought bog role. I ran out and bulk bought masking tape, paints and bubble wrap (I do bubble wrap sculpts, I know! Crazy in it) Crazy but ‘crazy cool’! Yep! crafting is about to get an edge! That I’m gonna snap off, and make somet even more edgyerer with!”
While Create and Craft was founded as a TV channel, the brand has more recently been experiencing growth online with almost half its sales now coming from their website. The appointment of Lemon cements its commitment to providing content for a younger craft-engaged female audience who are most likely to be YouTube and social media users.
The first part of Keith Lemon’s content series is available on the Create and Craft YouTube channel. New episodes will be released every other Monday at 12pm.
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