Giovanna Fletcher has been helping to support a baby gift company whose HQ was destroyed by an alleged arson attack.
The founders and staff at personalised gift service My 1st Years were left devastated when a blaze ripped through their 90,000 sq. ft. premises in Northampton earlier this month.
But today the company said it has been overwhelmed by messages of support after I’m A Celeb’s Giovanna, 36, interviewed its founders Dan Price and Jonny Sitton in a video posted on social media.
Thoughtful: Giovanna Fletcher has been helping to support a baby gift company whose HQ was destroyed by an alleged arson attack
My 1st Years, which employs 150 people, had also already received offers of support from high street giants such as Argos and Boots – and even free office space from a local business.
TV presenter Giovanna told the pair: ‘As an outsider you see what has happened and you are completely shocked to know that the company has been growing, growing, growing and then suddenly it is all burned down.
‘You have become a brand that people associate with such lovely times so I feel like your customers will stick with you.’
Support: The company My 1st Years said it has been overwhelmed by messages of support after I’m A Celeb’s Giovanna, 36, interviewed its founders Dan Price and Jonny Sitton in a video posted on social media
Mother-of-three Giovanna is a friend of Dan and Jonny, who have spent the last ten years building their business into one of the UK’s most popular suppliers of personalised baby gifts.
The pair said that they feared the worst when they awoke to be told their life’s work had gone up in flames during the early hours of May 1st.
In the video, Jonny said: ‘We had everything there, we had our offices at the front and we had a production office behind it, and then there was the warehouse and all of the stock.’
The blaze was so intense that Northampton Fire and Rescue Service it took eight pumps to douse the fire, using water from a local river. The fire destroyed all of the company’s machinery along with 3,000 pallets of stock.
Shock: The founders and staff at personalised gift service My 1st Years were left devastated when a blaze ripped through their 90,000 sq. ft. premises in Northampton earlier this month
Dan said: ‘We woke up on Saturday May 1st in the early hours of the morning to about 60 missed calls from our head of operations, Richard – and we realised that the building was on fire. We just couldn’t believe it. We went there straight away and by the time we got there the whole building was burned.’
Giovanna asked the pair: ‘Are we talking everything was gone? I guess you are talking about fabrics and things… Would you have been certain there was no one inside?’
Dan replied: ‘Luckily nobody was in the building, which was the main thing we asked about straight away. It’s all of our machines – and all of our stock as well, everything has gone. The first thing Jonny and I said on the morning is that we have to show positivity to get the business back up and running as soon as possible.’
Sad: The blaze was so intense that Northampton Fire and Rescue Service it took eight pumps to douse the fire, using water from a local river
The company says within 72 hours it had refunded around 1,400 orders from customers that were outstanding at the time of the fire.
It set up a temporary HQ at a local hotel with a handful, while the majority of employees were granted paid leave until the company bounces back.
Giovanna said: ‘I think the drive that you have shown since the start of all this (means) I have no question that you are going to pull through and get it done.’
Tough: The fire destroyed all of the company’s machinery along with 3,000 pallets of stock
Police have launched an arson investigation in the blaze, which is among several other unexplained fires that have occurred recently in the local area.
My 1st Years today thanked customers, staff, and suppliers for their support.
Dan added in a statement: ‘At first we just didn’t know what to do, but the support we had moved us to tears and gave us strength to fight.
Business: Giovanna is a friend of Dan and Jonny, who have spent the last ten years building their business into one of the UK’s most popular suppliers of personalised baby gifts
‘We couldn’t believe the support we got, from staff, from investors through to high street names, rallying to get us back live, including giants like Sainsburys, Argos, Boots and many others, through to smaller companies and even competitors. Offers of every kind have flooded in, to give us office or warehouse space, help of all kinds. This is a dark time but we are now really seeing the light to rebuild stronger than before.
‘We want to thank the firefighters and police who got to the building right away. One of the key firemen involved was even a My 1st Years customer, that was incredible.
‘The bravery of he and his colleagues humbled us. We just wanted to thank everyone so much, including Giovanna, we will recover because of the kindness we’ve been shown.’
Family: Giovanna shares her three young boys, Buzz, seven, Buddy, five, and Max, two, with Tom Fletcher, 35