Roberta Pederzoli

Getting started 

Roberta had the idea for her jewellery business several few years ago, when she was playing in a park in Italy with her daughter. They were making necklaces and little crowns by joining daisies together, as she used to do as a child. 

“It reminded me of when I was very young and being  secretly pleased any time a temperature thermometer fell, breaking and releasing its mercury inside,” Roberta explains. “Despite knowing it was dangerous, I loved playing with it, separating the mercury into little spheres and hypnotically watching them merge together. I decided I wanted to retrain in jewellery making, so that’s what I did!”

In 2013, Roberta won an award by The Goldsmiths’ Craft and Design Council, also known as the Oscar of the Jewellery Industry. This gave her the confidence in pursuing a career in jewellery, hence Quinta Essenza was born. Her distinctive designs are inspired by Italian culture and Scotland’s natural environment.

Support

Roberta says she had to take small steps and learn from her mistakes. “I still remember when I started my business, it seemed like such a daunting task, so much to do and not being sure where to start. It was paramount for me to have small achievable targets and to overcome the fear of making mistakes. A lot of great business ideas never reach the market because of excessive perfectionism.” 

She’s grateful to her family, and to Growbiz for helping her along the way. "Their support has been outstanding and their events and business resources are great,” she says. Roberta is a member of Perthshire Artisans, a Smart Village for creatives run by GrowBiz.

Roberta has used the pandemic to teach herself how important it is to adapt. “I am not tech savvy, but in the last few months I have learnt new digital skills, which enabled me to communicate with my customers and other organisations.

“Moving into my new studio at Perth Creative Exchange run by Wasps Studios has also been a turning point for me. This gave me access to a lot of support and opportunities which I would have never be able to get working from home. I believe Creative Exchange will become an important cultural hub at the heart of Perth, providing quality artwork from talented artists.”

Looking to the future

Roberta was recently commissioned to make a group of medals, which she says meant a great deal to her both personally and artistically, and so would like to expand her technique in medal making. “I love medals as they are a very symbolic medium to distil ideas,” she adds.

She is also keen on providing workshops for general wellbeing. “I believe art has an incredible therapeutic power. This is particularly true at present as Covid-19 has affected everyone. At the moment I am working with Creative Stirling and other artists to deliver workshops aimed at people who have been particularly affected by the pandemic.”

Roberta’s advice for anyone wanting to start a business is: Running a business is not a sprint, but a marathon. How true that is!

Find out more about Quinta Essenza at https://www.quintaessenza.co.uk