The growth of Giglets

Posted on May 10, 2009 in Uncategorized

Forming a publishing company whilst at school and continuing to run it whilst full-time university students might seem like too much of a challenge to some, but not to Giglets Ltd.

 Giglets (whose old scots name means ‘laughing children’) was formed as an entrant to the Young Enterprise competition whilst its members were still pupils at Loudoun Academy, but they are still going from strength to strength. Following our interview with Managing Director Craig Johnstone in September 2008, the SYP talked to Craig again, to ask about the launch of the company’s next project and their future plans.

The company’s second book, Tam O’Haggis: The Life and Times of Robert Burns, sees the quirky character from their first publication lead the reader through the life of Robert Burns, from his birth 250 years ago, through his childhood and adult life as a poet, to his untimely death, brought about by his excessive lifestyle.  The story and illustrations were produced by the creative writing and design team at Giglets, and a read-along CD – also made in-house – accompanies  the story, to aid children who are learning to read or have visual impairments.

The launch of the second book was held at the Rugby Park Hotel in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire. Around 100 people attended the event, including teachers and those at the top of local education authority, people from various industry sectors who have long supported Giglets, and ‘we of course had a few friends and family at the event too,’ Craig told us.

As Tam O’ Haggis is an educational product, Giglets were keen to have local children involved, and so they invited school children from three local schools (Galston Primary School, St. Andrews’s Primary School and Loudoun Academy) to the launch. ‘The children did a toast and reply to the lassies as you would have at a Burns Supper. We had a girl playing the fiddle showing off her talents, and we even had one boy who had read our first book, Tam O’Haggis (our adaptation of Tam O’Shanter), and then written his own version of the poem which he recited for us. There was also a bagpiper there to play people into the venue, ‘ said Craig.

Adult speakers were also invited, including the writer and tutor Ann Burnett, and Stuart Miller, the CEO of Young Enterprise Scotland, which is, of course, the organisation that allowed the creation of Giglets in the first place, and who have supported the company ever since.

Giglet’s members planned and organised the launch, with the help of the Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce. ‘They gave us huge support and helped us with the promotion and organisation of the event. Without them it would have been impossible to pull off an event of this size off for the first time’, Craig said. ‘Also we must thank the Rugby Park Hotel who sponsored the entire event, allowing us to have a great venue with great hospitality.’

So, how did the company generate their second book idea? According to Craig, ‘coming up with the new book was quite easy because this is the year of Homecoming, in celebration of the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns’ birth. The Scottish Government has a huge campaign built around this, including lots of events. As such it is important that kids can appreciate his works as well as his life. This is a story that is not often told and one which is relevant not only in Scotland but across the globe.’

And how is the book different from its predecessor? ‘It is a much bigger book and one which has been developed alongside education – as such it is more tailored to the needs of the children: something which is very important to us.

In some ways the second book was easier but in many ways it was like starting again as it is such a different book. We had to learn so much, be it in regard to getting it printed or how to formulate the content in a way that it can be easily used in education. Also we had to bear in mind that we still want this book to be a commercial success, so had to ensure that it would appeal to the book trade.

One of our biggest challenges was getting the story right both in its accuracy but also in its content. We did not want to make Burns appear as an angel because that he was not, but we had to get a balance. We had to be careful not to write a book that was just about the affairs he had and the children they produced, so we were dealing with "sensitive" material.’

Of course, Giglets have great plans for the future, including the launch of a new book by the end of the year, as well as an online bookstore and educational software, and they even plan to try to break into the food industry. By the end of 2009 they also hope to have secured a place in the international book trade, exporting goods to North America very soon. If anyone can do it, you get the feeling Giglets can.