Originally I was laughed at, told not to quit my day job and told “all I sell is dolls and they aren’t any value to anybody. Initially, people were excited about what was going on when seeing a young girl on the market selling,’ says Lola. Since the initial launch, Lola Love Dolls has started to make their way all over the world to places such as America, Germany, Spain and South Africa.

Afro Caribbean Dolls - Etsy UK Afro Caribbean Dolls - Etsy UK

One weekend a spare stall became available alongside Lola’s, so the pair took it on, with Isabella running the show.I literally bought a piece of fabric from a man who had them in the back of his van to put on the table,’ she remembers.

doll with afro hair — so ‘My daughter couldn’t find a Black doll with afro hair — so

After seeing how happy the doll made her daughter, mum Lola began to think about how she could market the dolls to a wider audience and began with a set of 16.Lola says the market trading even rubbed off on Isabella’s school friends who wanted to join in on the entrepreneurial action. Lola created the design of the dolls right down to the outfits and then found someone to make her vision. While she had some challenges along the way, including a set of dolls who’s hair didn’t turn out like her design, eventually she got her production line sorted. They wanted to take her picture as they could see that she’s very confident and knows what she’s doing. Working on the market stall provided quality time for Lola and Isabella and once the business took off, the entrepreneur was able to leave her secondary school role, which had previously seen her working from 8am to 6pm.

Afro Hair Dolls - Etsy UK

As the duo became familiar faces on the Portobello Market, Lola’s daughter Isabella decided to create her own brand of lip glosses titled ‘Isabella Love,’ at age six. I had a Sumup card reader and at the time Isabella was four, so she just sat with me as I put all the dolls on the table.When working with Isabella I can also teach her, guide her, give her the skills and watch her do many things in the business which has been so much fun for both of us,’ she says. For any single mothers wondering how she does it, Lola shares this advice: ‘Being a single mother, of course, can be very challenging.