Celebrity Big Brother boost for Ashington business

A Northumberland business received a high-profile boost on Monday when its products were featured on Celebrity Big Brother. The famous housemates, including Vinnie Jones and Stephanie Beacham, donned adult-sized romper suits made in Ashington for one of their tasks. The All in One Company only had about 24 hours to custom-make the suits but expect to benefit from the TV exposure. The business was set up by Kate Dawson, who originally worked in child care. Made-to-measure Kate said she started the business six years ago after a nanny looking after her daughter said her sleep suit looked so comfy she would like one too. At first she worked from home but in 2008 expanded to open a factory employing six staff.

The all-in-one sleep suits are made-to-measure (sizes go up to XXL men's!) and basically look like giant baby romper suits. However, the Celebrity Big Brother team opted for plain white suits for the housemates. Part of the task involved the celebrities being pelted with things like cat food and custard and the producers wanted it to show up! Vogue Kate said it had been hard work to get the business off the ground and lots of people had told her she wouldn't be able to do it. She said: "It is very hard work. I'm at the factory sometimes 18 hours a day but it's worth it." The company was named business of the year in the 2008 Wansbeck Business Awards and the sleep suits have also been mentioned on the Vogue website.