Made In Thailand

Our website’s currently being updated by Liz, our designer, while she cycles from New Zealand to the UK. How cool is that! We’re presently Made in Thailand, but shortly to be Made In Laos, and thereafter Made In China.

Chris and Liz on Abel Tasman, NZ.

Hats off to Liz and her partner Chris who have undertaken this epic ride. On their website , Liz recounts how, as a Mac-trained graphic designer working first for the BBC and then from home, she was certainly putting all her creative and artistic skills to good use. However, she’d never undertaken a major physical challenge on this scale so she’s been tested in terms of body stamina, endurance and strength as never before.

After meeting Chris on his second gap year in New Zealand, they decided to embark on this international marathon together. A few quick spins round Cumbria and from John O’Groats to Land’s End (not to be sneezed at) and they were all set to go. Add to the fact they are doing this as a sponsored ride in aid of their favourite charity, Child’s Dream and you realize what a fabulous project this is.

Liz and Chris are aiming to raise £20,000 to build a school in South-East Asia. Child’s Dream is very much about resourcing people in countries like Thailand, Burma and Laos to become self-sustaining entrepreneurs or to run their own schools. We hear much about poverty in Africa but the plight of the poor and some children in South-East Asia receives far less press. Whether it is human trafficking, the threat of child prostitution, or forced migration and re-settlement, inhabitants of these countries face critical problems.

Ward for the old and very young, Northern Thailand

So it’s been great to just hear from Liz and Chris as they arrive in Bangkok, having just cycled over 6800 kilometres. They’re currently heading up towards Chiang Mai where they’ll meet representatives from Child’s Dream and work for one month at a school near Mae Hong Son right on the Burmese border.

Boarding House for school in Mae Hong Son.

They’ll be teaching English to children and generally making themselves useful around Tomato village . After that, they head off into Laos and then deep into China.

Advance class at Tomato Village

For Liz, this has been an opportunity to reflect on many of the things we hold dear at Millican - giving back, belonging, minimizing our carbon footprint, and celebrating the diversity of the world’s places and peoples. Check out her blog for more on her observations, plus some engaging interviews with families met on their travels. Yet again, Liz’s e-mails and blog have brought home to us how many people are now seeking to do life differently, living by their personal values, and forging unique paths, kids and all.

Quite how Liz manages to keep our site updated on her bike remains a mystery to us - we guess it’s something to do with the prevalence of Internet cafes in South-East Asia. But it’s still a marvel. Also, as a boost to us, there’s the enjoyable thought of Liz and Chris flying the flag for Millican as they go. Liz carries Andy our water bottle in her rucksack on her back while Chris has recently used his as a decanter for some Captain Morgan’s rum, bought while they were on board a family’s catamaran for a month.

So the next time you spot changes on our website, remember that they’ve probably been designed in Laos by an exhausted but fulfilled cyclist who’s had the gumption to get on her bike and realize her dreams. Love you, Liz.

Showtime

It’s a year since we launched at The Royal Highland Show. Not the most auspicious location for our first stall - between a dog stand and a funeral parlour. But this didn’t prove to be a bad omen. We shifted bags and talked to loads of people who really liked where we were coming from.

One year on and we’ve been back on the road. Back in April, we kicked off at Badminton. With our new trailer towing behind the Bongo from Keswick, it made for a long journey to get there. Going at 60mph has its downsides. Once we let go, though, tension just fell away. In fact, it felt more like holiday time than a business trip.

We arrived around midnight to a hushed ground. Squeezing ourselves into the back of the Bongo, it was time for a few hours’ sleep before dawn.

We were up early exploring the showground, bacon sarnies in hand. Then it was time to set up the Millican stand. This is made up almost entirely from recycled, or pre-loved, items bought from the auction or charity shops.


That might sound makeshift but the mix of old apple crates, vintage suitcases and chests, old camping gear, an authentic 1930’s camp bed, nailed walking boots, and the old Brownie camera and primus make for a great look.


Showtime - and the gates opened. People flocked in and, though the day turned bitterly cold, they kept coming. Bolstered by cups of tea and chocolate from neighbours, we happily chatted with Millican customers, loads of whom had bought bags last year and were back to regale us with their adventures.

Our next gig was rather different - Holker Hall, a country house, under a blazing sun. While a 1920’s style band played, we ran the stand, meeting more great people. Like the two poor souls who walked around dressed as bushes in the baking heat, and the "grumpy old man" painted head-to-toe in metallic brown who cycled off with our 1947 bike.

Or Simon and Hamish Patterson, who make wooden sailing boats while Simon also runs his own local cider pressing business. It turns out that he visits people’s homes anywhere in Cumbria, picks their apples, and makes personalized cider for them. What a great idea, keeping things local.

Finally, we’re just back from The Royal Highland Show, north of the border. Great to celebrate our first anniversary back there.

Wednesday was set-up day, though I downed tools to watch the England match. Our Scottish neighbours were predictably less bothered. And why not, given the final result? No matter, the stand was ready by 10pm and it was still light. We collapsed into our tent, earplugs installed. Nothing like camping in a field between the main road into Edinburgh and the airport runway.

Next day, the largest agricultural fair in Europe kicked off. With sections dedicated to cattle, sheep, countryside, outdoor living, food, and craft skills, it can take two days just to get round. The section for agricultural machinery is jaw-dropping for the uninitiated and long-in-the-tooth alike. It was a tough call deciding not to splash out for the centre-stage combine harvester commanding a mere third of a million pounds.


But aside from the long hours (thirteen to fourteen hours on the stand every day),and the great feedback we got on our new products, it was, as with any show, the people you meet who made it. Stand-outs for us this time were:

· The guys from Good Nature ( who’ve just won an award for their pesticide-free fruit, veg and salad, all sold in recycled packaging. Plus strawberries to die for.

· The two farmers from Argyll who taught us tricks they use for upping the value of their lambs, thanks to some adroit leaning on the scales.

· One of our first customers, Mike, who returned to tell us about the journeys he’s made with Mark the field bag over the last year.

· Plus the lad whose Dad made him stand in a transparent bucket every day to show off their new line of waterproof socks.

Four days and 190,000 visitors later, it was time to pack up and head off back to the Lakes. The grounds cleared, the seagulls descended for rich pickings, and that was for it for another year.

The footie had been dire but Europe’s biggest agricultural extravaganza had come up trumps again.

Now in Selfridges

How exciting is this: we've just launched Millican in Selfridges, in its flagship store on Oxford Street, London.


The Millican range looks rather good alongside some of the big players in town - Paul Smith, Mulberry, Tumi and Knomo.

The Selfridges launch happens just in time for our first anniversary this month. A proud moment.


If you're in London, go and check this out for yourself. You'll find us in the Luggage Department on the lower ground floor.

We'd love to hear what you think.