As a tech leader at consulting firm Credera, Asima Crewe’s days are already packed, often spent deep in complex digital transformation projects.
But while many people unwind after work in front of the television, Crewe spends the rest of her free time building a tech start-up from scratch and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I’ve learned so much through having a busy career,” she tells Prolific North. “One of the biggest lessons I’ve learnt, and it sounds cliche, is that if you enjoy what you do, it doesn’t feel like work. I’m so passionate about Shiny Moments, I believe in it so much that I genuinely love every minute I spend on it.”
READ MORE: UK government unveils new AI “growth zone” backed by £8bn private investment
She’s just launched Shiny Moment, a digital solution she describes as helping families preserve their “most meaningful” physical memories from home videos, letters, school reports to family photos, before they fade with time.
But what’s it really like juggling a full-time job alongside life as a first-time founder?
“It might look like a lot of hours and effort, and it is, I don’t deny that,” she says. “But I’m obsessed with my new business. I only launched recently and there’s been so much work behind the scenes to get everything set up.
“It’s a new year, I’m in a brand-new phase, and I’m loving it. There’s definitely a big juggle, but getting the word out about Shiny Moments has quickly become my favourite thing.”
For years, she had an “itch” to build something of her own but she always knew it had to be a business she truly “believed in”.
The idea behind Shiny Moment came from a familiar parenting dilemma, as her son kept coming home with piles of artwork and documents he’d accumulated through the school year.
“I always carried a little bit of guilt that they were just there and I felt like I wasn’t appreciating the amount of effort that he had put into them. I kept saying: ‘One day I’ll get around to looking at those’ and that one day never comes. Then another bag or box of stuff appears.”
And that’s what inspired the company’s name, a nod to the “shiny moments” families share while revisiting their memories together.
“When we had his baby scan image, we were told that they fade over time. I remember thinking how precious an item it was, yet it fades unless you look after it properly. The same goes for their school work: if it’s ink or paint on paper, it’s not going to last forever. That’s why I thought digitalising these moments would be a good solution.”
As she started exploring the idea further, she soon discovered a wide range of use cases from preserving memories left behind when parents pass away, to helping people downsize or free up space without losing their keepsakes.
But the “standout moment” that really helped turn Shiny Moments from a concept into a reality came during a call with an angel investor who opened up his diary.
“I only had three very basic slides about what the concept was,” she admits. “It’s since morphed into something completely different. He encouraged me and said: ‘You just have to do this’ because of how viable it would be to other investors and because of how passionate I am about it.
“That was such a confidence boost. I’ve been quietly validating the idea in my head so to have somebody who was clearly so successful, who knew what he was talking about, give me that push? That was definitely a big moment.”
How Shiny Moments works
Designed to be as “simple” as possible, she explains how customers can order a set of empty boxes via the Shiny Moments website, which arrive with full packing instructions.
Once the boxes are filled and sealed at a customer’s “own pace”, they’re placed in a mailing bag with a return postage label, collected from the customer’s home, and sent to specialist scanning company Storetec.
From there, each item is professionally scanned and indexed. Customers then receive a secure link where they can download all of their digitised “shiny moments” and store them locally.
But given the sentimental value of the items involved, how secure is sending them through the post?
“I’ve researched all of the mailing providers for this and Royal Mail offers a service where you book a collection from your door, so that reduces any potential risk,” she explains. “It’s early days for me yet in terms of understanding customer concerns, but I have sent physical items such as home videos in the post in the past.”
She’s also taken time to research the scanning facility she’s using, to reassure customers that their sentimental items are “secure”.
“Storetec has ISO certification, which is an international standard. As soon as a box arrives, it receives a unique identifier and is tracked at every stage of the process. They have been independently audited and are annually audited on that process as well.”
So what makes Shiny Moments different from any potential competitors out there and what stops someone from simply scanning each item at home?
“People are really busy and it can take time. We make it more convenient. There’s the quality as well, the scanning facility uses different machines depending on the type of item.
“You don’t need to worry about whether you are taking pictures at the right angle or in the right light. There’s also the indexing of them. The expertise that Storetec has makes all the difference, and I’ve trusted them with all of my child’s items as that was part of the testing and setting this up. It’s incredible.
“I have also searched far and wide in my research before setting the business up, I’ve crawled around many, many places with a box of my son’s items asking if they could do this, But there was nothing out there, so I don’t believe anybody else is doing this.”
Navigating life as a first-time founder
With a tech background that includes stints in the public sector and at consulting firms like KPMG, she says the “meticulous planning” and attention to detail required to run “huge projects” has almost set her up for success to bring her own project to life.
“I feel really accepted by the Manchester business community. I don’t know whether it’s just a Northern thing but there’s a real sense of cheerleading. On the investment side of things, I’m open to conversations at any time.”
Although it’s still early days for Shiny Moments, her immediate focus is on spreading the message about the importance of preserving family memories.
“Imagine a parent travelling for work, sitting in a hotel room one evening and being able to scroll through their child’s schoolwork from the previous year. That’s something they’d never do without dusting off a box when they were at home on the weekend. It just bridges that gap I haven’t seen any other solution do.”
She’s also keen to challenge narratives around female founders struggling to raise investment, or their horror stories with investors, as says she has experienced the “opposite problem”.
“I’ve found people believe in what I’m doing immediately. I’ve committed to setting it up by myself, just to learn everything about it in the beginning and to not have any external pressure.
“I’ve done so much planning and preparation before going to market. My website is ready, I feel really in control, and I truly believe in what I’m doing. I don’t think there’s any limit to how successful Shiny Moments can be. I can’t think of a single person I’ve met who wouldn’t use it at some point. That’s the confirmation I need.”
