Turning a passion project into a sustainable business

Emma Barnett and Jeremy Weil co-founded their family business Colour Your Streets in 2024, not long after their daughter was born.

Inspired by their pram walks around their local neighbourhood with their older son, they were surprised to learn local colouring books of people's areas didn't exist.

So they created one: "Colour In Brixton", swiftly followed by "Colour In Herne Hill". Now the Colour Your Streets family numbers over 100 books, with more being added each week.

The duo are now mapping the UK and the world with their colouring books and love their many bespoke commissions too. Described by the Guardian as "a family business grounded in community and curiosity", Colour Your Streets is also diversifying into colouring-in biscuits and posters.

Key points from the session

Origins of Colour Your Streets

• The idea emerged during maternity and paternity leave walks while thinking about their five-year-old son.

• They searched for a local-themed colouring book and, finding none, decided to create their own.

• They made their first version using AI but later switched to professional designers.

Early growth and market demand

• Friends and community members expressed interest – which helped confirm there was demand.

• After the pandemic, people developed stronger connections with their local areas, fuelling excitement for personalised books.

• There had never been location-specific colouring books mapping UK towns and cities before.

Balancing the business with full-time jobs and family

• Emma works as a BBC journalist, Jeremy works at The Economist.

• The couple built the business in the evenings and at weekends while balancing their parenting responsibilities.

• They managed their time by having structured working hours and clearly separating their roles.

Scaling and business operations

• Started by selling locally and fulfilling orders from their home.

• Moved to a warehouse and partnered with a fulfilment company (Hive) for logistics.

• Expanded from local London areas to mapping neighbourhoods, cities and towns across the UK.

• Now adding 15 to 20 new areas per month based on demand, search data and community engagement.

• Expanded product range to include wall art, posters, colouring biscuits and jigsaw puzzles.

Business model and sales strategy

• Direct-to-consumer (DTC): Most sales are through their website.

• Retail and wholesale: Stocked in independent shops, museums, libraries and hotels.

• Marketing and brand growth: Started with organic reach, later invested in paid ads (Meta, programmatic advertising).

Challenges and key lessons

• Launching a product: Started with small print runs and tested demand before scaling.

• Funding: Self-funded and profitable from the start; chose not to raise outside investment.

• Customer demand: People buy books for nostalgia, gifts or as stress relief. (They're not just for children!)

Future vision

• The goal is to fully map the UK and expand internationally.

• Develop partnerships with museums, education sectors and corporate gifting programmes.

• Improve international fulfilment beyond UK-based shipping.

Working as a husband and wife team

• Clear separation of responsibilities (Jeremy: operations/finance; Emma: editorial/creative).

• Weekly business meetings and separate WhatsApp group for work discussions.

• Maintaining balance between work and personal life remains an ongoing effort.

Key takeaways for entrepreneurs

• Start small and test demand before scaling up.

• Celebrate small wins along the way.

• Use free and low-cost tools to launch (for example, Shopify, Canva, online printing services).

• Find ways to optimise processes as you grow (for example, by outsourcing fulfilment).

• Seek advice from communities, networks and fellow entrepreneurs.

Get advice on starting and growing a business

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