As we mentioned in a post last week, we ran a campaign on our Twitter page on Valentine’s Day designed to celebrate true feelings and relationships but turning your personalised love messages into song. We were overwhelmed with the number of responses we had, with hundreds of tweeters sending us heart-warming messages for their loved ones.

There were some serious tear jerkers, like these ones…

And this might possibly be our favourite video of the day, a VERY special message from Brett… we actually had a real life marriage proposal!

We are thrilled to announce that she said YES! Love really was in the air…

View all the #TweetHeart videos here.

We’re all about saying it your way this Valentine’s Day – forget red roses and chocolate, 14 February should be about celebrating real people, real relationships and real feelings. That’s why we’re offering our Twitter followers the chance to give their valentine a truly personal gift.

We’re teaming up with The Coopers, a musical quartet who won last year’s Futuresound award, who will be turning your messages of love into song. To serenade your valentine, simply tweet us (@nothsdotcom) with your special message, including the hash tag #TweetHeart, and on Valentine’s Day we will post a short music video of The Coopers performing your personalised message.

Get tweeting early to ensure your message makes the cut!

Shop the fashion department here.

Clockwise from top left –

Gold Metallic V Neck Wrap Dress by China Doll Boutique

Asymmetric Hem Floaty Skirt by China Doll Boutique

Alexia Lace Dress by Rise Boutique

Zip Front Dress by Jolie Moi

Bee Striped Knit Dress by Kiki’s

Sarah Wilson is our Head of Brand. She is charge of making sure our customers know what we’re about, and that everything we do fits with the notonthehighstreet.com vision. Her favourite item on the site is Karin Akesson’s bird print.

She says: “I seem to have become a serial wedding attender over the past few month, with lots of close friends going down the aisle. I bought this print as a gift for one of my friends who was getting married, and gave it to her on the morning of her wedding. The phrase ‘Today Something Wonderful Will Happen’ holds such a strong sentiment for someone on their big day, and it also served as a perfect yet unusual ‘something blue’ gift. The bride subsequently had it framed and it now hangs on a wall in her home as a reminder of her special day’.

This Valentine’s Day create a gift that shows someone how much they mean to you by saying it your way. See the collection here

WORK FOR NOTONTHEHIGHSTREET.COM

As our in-house team continues to grow, we are looking for enthusiastic, talented, hard-working people who share our passion for supporting our small businesses and lovely customers too. If you feel that you have the drive to be part of our dedicated team, based in Richmond, please see our vacancies below.

Product Manager

notonthehighstreet.com is looking for an experienced Product Manager to join our growing team.

We are looking for an open for analytically-minded, enthusiastic Product Manager. The successful applicant will work closely with a cross-functional team composed of technology, marketing, and international development. Paired with user experience research, we are looking to this candidate to define and implement a vision that will enable notonthehighstreet.com to meet its ambitious expansion targets and ensure the best in user experience.

The Product Manager will own the strategy of our seller-facing CMS from planning to execution, researching and prioritising product and seller requirements, defining and implementing internal tools to scale the business and increase productivity of teams.

The candidate for this position must come from a technical background, ideally with a Computer Science degree (MBA a real plus), with at least five years spent in web-centric product management in the e-commerce sector. Design awareness is an advantage. Applicants for this position must be able to display a thorough knowledge of user-centred web design techniques and methodologies, a solid understanding of HTML, Adobe Flash, JavaScript, CSS and other web technologies. In-depth knowledge of Google Analytics and Google Website Optimiser, and a strong understanding of the online marketplace model, are key.

For further information or to apply for this position, please send your CV to careers@notonthehighstreet.com. Please include a cover letter and outline your salary expectations.

Senior Developer – Ruby

We’re looking for a senior ruby developer to work full-time as part of our technical team at notonthehighstreet.com. As a senior developer, you’ll work closely with a cross-functional team comprised primarily by our technical, international development, user experience and marketing departments, amongst others.

To apply for this role you’ll need to show outstanding Ruby on Rails skills as well as experience with Apache and MySQL (or similar) web servers and databases, and strong experience with HTML and CSS. We’d also like to see a history of working with payment gateways, agile development methodologies, and strong TDD and object-oriented design skills.

Our ideal candidate would be from an ecommerce background, with knowledge of JavaScript (in particular ExtJS), mobile web and/or native development, internationalisation and scalability problem solving, as well as experience working in a Unix environment.

Becoming part of a diverse team, it’s essential that you have excellent communication skills (fluent English is a must), are well-organised, detailed and accurate, can work quickly and to tight deadlines and have the ability to work with junior or non-technical members of the wider notonthehighstreet.com team.

If you have a Computer Science degree or similar experience and would like to join our fast-paced, fast-growing technical team, please send your CV to careers@notonthehighstreet.com. Don’t forget to include a cover note and outline your salary expectations.

Marketing Analyst

Are you the marketing analyst we need to join our busy team? Our business is growing rapidly and we need to make sure that our ongoing marketing strategy and decisions are based on strong analytical insight and experience. Since notonthehighstreet.com launched in 2006 we’ve doubled in size every year, so we’re constantly expanding and developing to meet the needs of our customers. Although we have a wealth of data, we need your skills to help us extract and develop it into meaningful insight. The role will involve measuring campaign impact and spotting longer-term trends. You’ll also help us to build an analytical framework where we can develop a reporting and tracking infrastructure within our in-house development team. Sound exciting?

As our ideal candidate, you’ll have proven analyst experience in an online retail environment and will be familiar working with large data warehouses. You will have worked with marketing teams to analyse and assess true incrementality over campaigns, and naturally you’ll have been involved in the briefing process to ensure correct targeting. You will have a minimum of a 2:1 Bachelor degree in a quantitative field of study (preferably computer science-related) and proficiency in large database manipulation through standard access tools such as SQL, with experience in SAS and/or SPSS for statistical data analysis. With a dedicated eye for detail and strong communication skills, you also share our passion for championing creative small businesses.

If you’re talented, dedicated and passionate about analytics, please send your CV along with a 250 word cover letter to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Partner Communication Manager

We have an exciting opportunity within our growing marketing team for an experienced Communication Manager.

As our Partner Communication Manager, you will be responsible for providing consistent and effective communications to our seller community (we like to refer to them as our Partners) and helping to implement online and offline Partner community strategies. You’ll be driving the advocacy of our Partners to ensure that notonthehighstreet.com is the marketplace of choice for the UK’s best creative small businesses through direct Partner communication and relevant support material. Your insights, gained from the analysis of various communication channels, will help direct the development of our Partner offer and experience.

You’ll have previous experience in both traditional and interactive copywriting, with a passion for the craft of communication and the ability to spot errors from a mile away. Experience in implementing social media strategy and the management of an online community is a must for this role, as you’ll be analysing and reporting on Partner engagement across a wide range of social media platforms.

Putting your writing skills to good use, you’ll provide accessible and relevant material on a huge range of subjects, from photography to product development, to our ever-expanding Partner community. Another varied and extremely important part of the role will be to collate and prepare content for weekly updates, newsflashes and Partner newsletters.

Excited to join our busy team? For more information or to apply for this position, please send your CV along with a cover letter outlining your salary expectations to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Product Executive

notonthehighstreet.com are looking for a motivated and committed Product Executive to join our desktop and mobile product development team. Working alongside the Product Manager, you will support the development and implementation of the product strategy to ensure notonthehighstreet.com continues to innovate as an award-winning marketplace and one of the fastest growing e-commerce businesses in the UK.

As Product Executive, you will be responsible for monitoring and reporting on key metrics to provide insight into site performance and user experience, as well as identifying trends and opportunities that will deliver efficiencies and improvements to the customer experience. You will be managing the product roadmap, including scoping out product requirements and drawing up detailed product briefs, working with our technical team to ensure new products and features are delivered on time and to specification, as well as defining their success metrics, and testing and measuring their impact against these.

The ideal candidate will have proven experience working in a product development role within an online business and good working knowledge of managing and developing a product roadmap. Strong analytical skills, with the ability to pull insight from large amounts of data, and a good understanding of online insight methodologies, including qualitative research and quantitative testing are essential. You will have a minimum of a 2:1 Bachelor degree in a quantitative field of study and proficiency in using web tracking tools such as Google Analytics, as well as a keen eye for detail and excellent communication skills.

For further information or to apply for this position, please send your CV and a 250 word cover letter to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

International Marketing Manager

In anticipation of notonthehighstreet.com’s global expansion, we are looking for an International Marketing Manager to join the ranks at our offices in Richmond. As advocate for customers and sellers outside the UK, this person will lead and coordinate all marketing activities to support our ambitious expansion goals, developing a marketing strategy and launch plan for each market.

The ideal candidate for this role will be strongly analytical and eager to roll up their sleeves, with broad marketing experience – from research through to brand development and detailed online campaign execution – and an understanding of consumer trends and purchase drivers across a range of markets and product categories. A strong working knowledge of web tracking tools and fluent English are must-haves; other languages are a real bonus.

If you are educated to at least degree level and have experience of five years or more in an international ecommerce online marketing role, we’d like to hear from you.
Please send your CV to careers@notonthehighstreet.com, making sure to include a cover note and salary expectations.

International Product Manager

Our international team are looking for a Product Manager to drive the internationalisation of our customer and seller platforms, from strategy and planning right through to execution. The successful candidate will work to define and implement a vision that enables notonthehighstreet.com to meet its ambitious international expansion goals, providing insight and analysis to ensure the best user experience for both customers and seller.

Defining, building and launching product features specific to international customers, the International Product Manager must have the ability to approach projects with a solution-focused attitude while balancing different requirements from all areas of the business. A technical background – ideally with a computer science degree – is imperative, as is at least five years’ experience in web-centric product management within an ecommerce business.

If you think you have what it takes to join our international development team in this fast-paced and analytical role, please send your CV – along with a cover note and salary expectations – to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Merchandising Executive

We have an opening for a Merchandising Executive within our growing merchandising team. You will be passionate about products and supporting small creative businesses, with a great affinity for the notonthehighstreet.com brand and a proven track record of keeping up with commercial trends. You’ll have background experience in product merchandising, preferably with an online retailer or marketplace.

As Merchandising Executive you’ll be working with cross-functional teams to deliver projects to deadlines, ensuring our catalogues are on-brand and drive conversion. Providing support to the Merchandising Catalogue Manager, you will analyse and collate sales data and customer buying patterns. On a daily basis you will be helping the company to maintain brand integrity through product selection and merchandising, whilst constantly identifying new trends and selection opportunities.

If you have strong organisational skills and experience in selection management and merchandising, we’d love to hear from you. For more information or to apply for this position, please send your CV along with a cover letter outlining your salary expectations to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Merchandising Manager

Our merchandising team is looking for a Merchandising Manager to support the Head of Merchandising. You will be passionate about products and championing small creative businesses, with a great affinity for the notonthehighstreet.com brand and a proven track record of keeping up with commercial trends. You’ll also have global experience: working with international teams within a worldwide business and producing relevant customer experience across multiple locales.

As Merchandising Manager you will manage our merchandising team, driving productivity and efficiency, to ensure that we are surfacing the right products to the right customers at the right time for both our online and direct marketing platforms. You’ll develop scalable international merchandising solutions whilst identifying new trends and selection opportunities. You will be responsible for analysing and reporting on both site and catalogue performance, so the management and relevancy of product selection is an important part of this role.

Are you a hands-on individual with a passion for managing multiple ongoing projects and deadlines, with international merchandising experience? For more information or to apply for this position, please send your CV along with a cover letter outlining your salary expectations to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Head of Copy

Could you be the voice of notonthehighstreet.com?

We are looking for a Head of Copy to define and hone the company’s tone of voice and generate consistently great copy across the field with pride. From powerful headlines and captions to inspiring marketing content and product copy, your work will be clear, concise and accurate, with a deep understanding of the tones and language styles required to captivate our target markets. You will develop, express and instil the aspirations and ideals of the company through the written word.

An expert in your field, you will have significant editorial and copy writing experience. You will have worked in an online environment, and be able manage the balance between inspiring content that fits the brand and creating copy that is search engine friendly. You will also have had experience of developing catalogues and magazines that motivate customers to make a purchase.

Think this is a challenge just made for you and want to join one of the fastest growing online retailers in Europe? Then please send your CV, along with a covering letter stating your salary expectations, to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Copywriter & Proofreader

Are you passionate about word-perfect copy? Do misplaced commas, apostrophes and semicolons drive you a little crazy? Good, us too!

That is why we are searching for a passionate and eagle-eyed Copywriter and Proofreader to make sure every t is crossed and i dotted. You will be responsible for creating, tailoring, and improving copy across the board with full accountability for copy accuracy of all material published by the company. You will ensure that all material reflects and represents the creative, innovative and market-leading dimensions of notonthehighstreet.com in both content and style. This will be achieved both by supporting the process of producing copy across the company, and by writing, proofreading, re-writing or editing any and all content to ensure text is correct and tone of voice remains consistent, credible and inspiring.

We are searching for someone who is clear and concise, a creative thinker, and with an expert eye for detail and accuracy. Experience in copywriting and proofreading marketing and advertising literature – both on- and offline – is desirable.

Please send your CV, along with a covering letter stating your salary expectations, to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Financial Analyst

We’re looking for a results-oriented and self-driven Financial Analyst to support our Financial Analysis Manager in preparing, commenting and presenting financial reports and analysis of the company’s operations. Your key responsibilities will include preparing daily, weekly and monthly KPI updates, analysing department budgets and forecasts, assisting in annual budgeting and quarterly forecasting as well as accrual-making and prepayments at the end of the month.

You will be an empathic communicator; mature and comfortable dealing with other senior executives within the business. The role is ideal for a newly-qualified CIMA/ACCA accountant or a close candidate (CIMA preferred but not essential) with two or more years experience in an accounting/finance department.

For more information or to apply for this position, please send your CV along with a cover letter outlining your salary expectations to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Foundation Account Executive

We have a new and exciting opportunity within our account manager team for a Partner Support Executive.

Working exclusively with new sellers (we like to refer to them as our Partners) in their first year, you will be responsible for supporting Partners with day-to-day enquiries and helping them to make the most of their partnership with notonthehighstreet.com. You’ll help to advise them on key business concerns, such as pricing, delivery and product range and assist on the overall Partner education programme, as well as working with our Partner production team to ensure that the quality of content is as strong as possible.

You will need to be well-organised with strong written, verbal and computer skills – knowledge of Excel is highly recommended. As the first point of contact for new Partners, you will be enthusiastic about our partnership with sellers, and will have an awareness of and enthusiasm for small creative businesses.

This is a new and varied role reporting into our Foundation Account Manager and would suit a recent graduate looking for a career in account management. For more information or to apply for this position, please send your CV along with a cover letter outlining your salary expectations to careers@notonthehighstreet.com.

Alice in her studio with Roger the Dachshund

What is your background?

After graduating from Bath Spa University about ten years ago, I got my first big break doing a book cover for Penguin, and then a series of illustrations for The Times. I spent my first few years running around London with my portfolio by day and working in a busy restaurant by night. Gradually the illustration took over and I found myself drawing full time. I had a good studio space at Great Western Studios, near Ladbroke Grove, where I was surrounded by artists, dogs and mayhem as inspiration, and my career really took shape from then on.

What inspired you to start The Alice Tait Shop?

Around this time I was living the Notting Hill dream, walking along Portobello Road to my studio every morning, and I decided to create a print range I could sell to the locals and visitors. One of these designs was my ‘Map of London’, which was really popular and has led me to create lots more maps. My work was receiving more and more publicity, and increasingly I was getting emails from people who had spotted them and wanted to buy prints, which led me to finally set up The Alice Tait Shop.

What are your inspirations for your prints?

My first print designs were inspired by my Portobello walk into work – hence the popular ‘Alice and Chloe’ and ‘Antiques Shop’ prints. But now I simply enjoy drawing the world directly around me: anything from the different coloured ink pots on my desk to the faces of strangers in the street. My dachshund, Roger, is a constant companion and I’ve put him in nearly all of my pictures, so look out for him too! At the moment I am doing a drawing every day for a year.

Two of Alice’s prints, inspired by Portobello Road

What is your favourite print from you range?

Ooh, that’s a toughie – I love them for different reasons! If I had to choose then probably the ‘Homing Pigeons’; I am always sketching pigeons, and I noticed that much like people, pigeons tend to look like the town they come from. So this print has a posh pigeon from Henley and a not-so-posh one from Ramsgate.

What are your most exciting commission to date?

I was commissioned to produce an illustrated world map for Vogue for their recent December issue, which was great fun to do as I had lots of exotic locations to put on the drawing. Also look out for the new James Corden’s autobiography which has just been released, as I did the handwriting on the cover. And I was thrilled to design the wallpaper for the new Waitrose Cafés, any excuse to draw cakes all day…

Alice’s commissioned illustration for the December 2011 issue of Vogue magazine

See Alice’s full range of prints here.

The party was held at The Botanist in Kew, a short trip from our offices in Richmond. We made our way to the venue in our very own double-decker Routemaster, courtesy of Travel With Hunny .

With Rowen and Wren’s delightful glass-lined birch votives and a scatter of fairy lights strewn around the room, we were welcomed into a real winter wonderland. Each table was styled with gold table numbers by Ali’s House of String, and table runners lined with hearts and stripes Christmas ribbon by Seahorse. By Katie Sue provided beautiful name tags that were individually tied to delicious candy canes – a great idea for easy place name holders for a winter party or wedding.

A big thank you to all the partners who helped make our night so special!

Ronnie Corbett (CBE) was given a special Christmas treat from one of our sellers, Layer Eight, this year. His grandchildren arrived on Christmas Day wearing matching ‘Two Ronnies Glasses’ t-shirts in honour of the famous comedian and his partner Ronnie Barker. Ronnie’s daughters Sophie and Emma are both notonthehighstreet.com fans, and bought the t-shirts featuring the duo’s iconic glasses for all his grandchildren to surprise their grandad.

Jim & Vicki Lockwood, founders of Layer Eight said “This is the ultimate compliment for us, and to have been part of the Corbett’s Christmas Day is amazing. We – like most of the nation – love Ronnie to bits and for us to help make him smile is somehow poetic after all the laughs he has given us over the years!”

Today is our birthday! On this day six years ago, our lovely founders Holly and Sophie officially opened the very first notonthehighstreet.com offices. We’ve changed so much since then and can’t believe how time has flown, but we’re so excited to see what the next six years will bring.

Every year Holly’s mum, (and dedicated notonthehighstreet.com ambassador) Sally, spoils us with birthday treats – despite there being 20 times as many of us now as there were in the early days. On our first birthday, she tied number one-shaped balloons to the chairs of the four members of staff. This year we were given delicious shortbread biscuits in the shape of a number six, made by the wonderful Shortbread Gift Company. Our new year’s diet may be out the window, but it was certainly worth it. Thank you Sally for always making us feel so special!