On Friday the English Football Association confirmed that Fabio Capello would remain in his position as England manager for the duration of his contract which will take him upto the 2012 European Championships.  The decision would seem to be the obvious one for a numebr of reasons, not least because Capello would have climbed a steep learning curve after his first tournament in charge of England and will have now gained some invaluable experience to take forward.  Renewing the manager would have also been very costly for the FA who would have had to pay-off Capello and his backroom staff while offering more riduculous sums of money to try and entice another managerial lamb to the English media slaughter!  Encouragingly Capello has said that he will bring new energy into the squad which should see a clearout of the deadwood and the introduction of some fresh new names who will hopefully have more pride in playing for their country.  We can only hope that this will see an end to the inclusion of certain players on the strength of their big name and past performance rather than their current form and fitness.  

Meanwhile the FA may have scored an own goal themselves by holding off the renewal of the Nationwide Building Society's sposorship deal in the hope that England would have a successful World Cup Finals in South Africa.  The building society have now said that they are unlikely to renew their current deal once to expires at the end of this month. 

well most people won't be too surprised at the Engalnd team's exit from the 2010 World Cup finals, this time round it felt like the usual blind optimisim going into a major competition was finally tempered with a healthy chunk of realism. The team have now returned home and the recriminations are in full swing, Fabio has been told his future will be discussed in two weeks but let's hope somebody may finally have the intelligence to suggest it might just have been the players at fault!  The tiredness card is being played however it doesn't wash when you see foreign Premier League players like Carlos Tevez excelling and looking more livelier than ever.  Maybe heart, hunger and self-confidence should be more of a consideration/  Fifa have apologised today for the match officials who failed to recognise Frank Lampard's perfectly good equaliser which would have given the game a different dynamic, however, despite this the poor England defending combined with the decisive breaking and finishing of the German attack would have meant the final outcome of a Germany win would have remained the same.

Back to Premier League matters and it is looking increasingly likely that Roy Hodgson will be unveiled as the new Liverpool manager in the next 48 hours.  Hodgson is very experienced and performed footballing miracles with Fulham last season, taking them to the Europa League final and earning himself the League Manager's Association Manager of the Year award.  It will be great to see an Englsh manager back in charge of one of the big four English Premier League clubs again and should his appointment be confirmed we wish him all the very best.

The word this morning is that David James is likely to start tonight's second group match for England against Algeria.  Fabio Capello never actually names his squad until 2 hours before a match so their is no official confirmation yet that Robert Green will be left out of the team following his howler against the USA last Saturday, however, the BBC and many newspapers are reporting the fact that James will very likely start the match tonight.

Football certainly is a 'funny old game', by my reckoning Rafael Benitez was a manager who led one of England's best loved Premier League clubs to European glory in his first season in charge with a team predominantly built by his predecessor.  He then spent the next five years ridng on the coattails of that success bringing in more players of his own choice and rebuilding a team that then achieved less and less in terms of trophies won as the seasons went on?  At the height of his under-achievement he leads the team to a trophyless season, to seventh position in the Premier League and to exclusion from the 2010/11 Champions League and not surprisingly finds himself out of work.  After such a performance what would you put your money on happening next?, would he be

a) out of management for a while, join Spain's tv/radio punditry team for the 2010 World Cup, wait a while until the dust on his Liverpool career settles and then work his way back up the management ladder over the next few years into another prestigous position?

b) back in top flight management within a fortnight with the treble winning Champions of Europe?

Certainly is a funny old game!

Meanwhile Fabio Capello is itching to get the England team's 2010 World Cup underway, he took out some of his frustrations on cameramen accusing them of trying photograph the players through the windows of their training facility.  It's good to see a passionate England manager at last!  It's doubtful Sven would have ever got quite so upset?  England captain Steven Gerard also echoed Capello's sentiments at a press conference today when he spoke about the importance of the England players to keep their discipline during the campaign and to refrain from swearing on the pitch, this comes after Wayne Rooney managed to get himself booked in their final 'friendly' warm-up match.  It all bodes well for what will hopefully be a positive, no-nonsense, prima-donna-free campaign.

The classic comment of the week came yesterday from Joe Cole who said during his press conference that he thought one or two of the players would have liked to see some of the members of the press eaten by lions during the team's recent safari.  Watch the interview here  http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/world_cup_2010/8730702.stm

the England team took part in their final, hastily arranged, World Cup warm-up match in Rustenburg against local first division side Platinum Stars.  The match, which was only confirmed last Friday, was all ticket however tickets were free.  By all accounts England's performance was fairly uninspiring however the match was seen as a warm up with players keen to avoid any injuries so close to the start of the 2010 World Cup finals tournament, that said Wayne Rooney played with his usual passion and even managed to get himself booked for dissent!  The goals came from Jermaine Defoe, Joe Cole and Wayne Rooney in a match that saw England manager Fabio Capello make wholesale changes in the second half, Jope Cole was the only player to stay on for the full 90 minutes.  Not much could really be drawn from the game although the linking up of rooney and Heskey by Capello may give an indication of his preferred starting strike partnership for Saturdays first group match against the USA.

England captain Rio Ferdinand suffered an injury to his left knee today and is currently undergoing a scan in hospital in South Africa.  The 31 year old Manchester United defender sustained the injury towards the end of England's first training session in Rustenburg.  England manager Fabio Capello has placed Tottenham Hotspur defender Michael dawson on standby in the event that Ferdinand is unable to continue.  On a seperate issue reports are coming out of South africa that Didier Drogba is out of the tournament having suffered a fractured elbow during a friendly warm-up match.

Back in the U.K. Rafael benitez's departure from Liverpool FC has been confirmed and now Kenny Dalglish will help in the process of appointing a new manager for the club.

Fabio Capello has pledged his future to the England football team until the end of the Euro 2012 finals.  The deal eases concerns the football association may have had over rumours of an approach for Fabio Capello by Italian champions Inter Milan.  The England team left Heathrow airport yesterday evening on a Virgin Airlines flight to South Africa which touched down this morning.  After a 2 hour coach transfer the squad arrived at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Campus at Rustenburg where they will stay for the start of their 2010 World Cup finals campaign.  The England team shirt numbers have also been announced today and although there is no guarantee they may provide some clues as to Fabio capello's first team squad.  The full squad numbers are as follows, 1. David James 2. Glen Johnson 3. Ashley Cole 4. Steven Gerrard 5. Rio Ferdinand 6. John Terry 7. Aaron Lennon 8. Frank Lampard 9. Peter Crouch 10. Wayne Rooney 11. Joe Cole 12. Robert Green 13. Stephen Warnock 14. Gareth Barry 15. Matthew Upson 16. James Milner 17. Shaun Wright-Phillips 18. Jamie Carragher 19. Jermain Defoe 20. Ledley King 21. Emile Heskey 22. Michael Carrick 23. Joe Hart.

In other news it appears as though Rafael Benitez is on the verge of leaving Liverpool FC and could be relieved of the position of manager as soon as the weekend.  According to the BBC 'Benitez will be offered a multi-million pound severance deal to quit Anfield', the financial figure being quoted as possible payment to Benitez is between £3 million and £16 million.  inevitably talk of possible replacements has already started with the names of Roy Hodgson and Martin O'Neill being mentioned, however, it's more likely the club will install former manager Kenny Dalglish in an interim position until a permanent replacement is found.

After much waiting and delay Fabio Capello's final 23-man England squad to travel to the 2010 World Cup finals was finally released at 4pm (UK time) this afternoon.  The delay in naming the squad caused consternation amongst some journalists and broadcasters as they speculated about who the seven players to be left out of the original squad would be.  The FA decided to announce the squad via their official website however this led to the website crashing as a huge amount of users logged on to to find out the final 23-man squad.  Rumours were rife that Shaun Wright-Phillips had made the squad at the expense of Theo Walcott and finally at around 4pm (UK time) those rumours were confirmed, the other players to missout were Darren Bent, Adam Johnson, Scott Parker, Michael Dawson, Leighton Baines and Tom Huddlestone.  The full squad who will be going to South Africa tomorrow are Goalkeepers: Joe Hart (Manchester City), David James (Portsmouth), Robert Green (West Ham). Defenders: Jamie Carragher (Liverpool), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United), Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Ledley King (Tottenham), John Terry (Chelsea), Matthew Upson (West Ham), Stephen Warnock (Aston Villa). Midfielders: Gareth Barry (Manchester City), Michael Carrick (Manchester United), Joe Cole (Chelsea), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Aaron Lennon (Tottenham), James Milner (Aston Villa), Shaun Wright-Phillips (Manchester City). Forwards: Peter Crouch (Tottenham), Jermain Defoe (Tottenham), Emile Heskey (Aston Villa), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United).

Having just confirmed the signing of Charlton and England under 17 international Jonjo Shelvey, the Liverpool FC manager Rafael Benitez has spoken of the desire to sign more home grown players.  The Spaniard said "we are trying to bring in British players with passion, players who you can feel what playing for Liverpool means to them. Shelvey is one of these and we have two or three names ready so we will try to do the best for the club".  Benitez also added "I was trying to sign Gareth Barry before and Glen Johnson was the same idea - we have this long-term plan in place and we will try to follow the plan".

The Professional Footballer's Association have voted Wayne Rooney 2010 Player of the year, the 24 year old Manchester United and England striker won the acolade ahead of the likes of Didier Drogba, Carlos Tevez and Cesc Fabregas.  Rooney who has scored 34 goals for United this season said "It's a great feeling to win because it's voted for by the players. It's a great honour and I'm really proud".

Liverpool and Spain striker Fernando Torres has undergone knee surgery which will see him miss the rest of the Premier League season.  Torres has been troubled by torn cartilage in his right knee for some time and underwent the operation to repair it on Sunday evening.  The rehabilitation period is expected to be around six weeks which may effect his chances of appearing for Spain in the World Cup finals this summer.  It was also confirmed today that Liverpool FC's Europa Cup semi-final against Atletico Madrid will go ahead as planned on Thursday despite the disruption to air travel to and from the UK caused by dust particles from the active volcanic in Iceland. 

Liverpool football club has been put up for sale by it's American owners, George Gillette and Tom Hicks.  British Airways boss Martin Broughton has been tasked with selling the debt-ridden club which has had "numerous expressions of interest" according to Hicks and Gillette, the pair had initially instructed chief executive Christian Purslow to find £100m of outside investment to reduce the club's £237m debt, however, they now feel their best option is to sell.  In a statement, the owners said: "Owning Liverpool Football Club over these past three years has been a rewarding and exciting experience for us and our families.  Having grown the club this far we have now decided together to look to sell the club to owners committed to take the club through its next level of growth and development.  We are delighted that Martin Broughton has agreed to take the position of chairman, working alongside the club's excellent senior management team.  Martin is a distinguished business leader of excellent judgment and with a great reputation. He is a genuine football supporter and will seek to oversee the sales process in the best interests of the club and its supporters".

Ryan Giggs caused a stir when a newspaper interview with him suggested that he would return to international football should Welsh manager John Toshack call upon his services.  However as the reports began to gain momentum Giggs stepped in to play down his comments telling BBC Radio Manchester: "I've got no immediate plans on coming back and playing regularly", adding "I just said I wouldn't rule it out. If there was ever an emergency or a game that they needed me I would obviously think about it".  Manchester United's Portuguese winger Nani has been rewarded for his current form with a new four year contract, this despite still having two years to run on his existing contract.  Manager Sir Alex Ferguson told the club's website the 23 year old is "an emerging talent and has developed tremendously since joining the club".  Meanwhile it has been reported that Liverpool are keen to see the back of their outspoken winger Albert Riera, the 27 year old launched a stinging attack on manager Rafael Benitez last week and as a consequence now finds hmself an unwanted commodity.  It's likely that Riera will be loaned out to a Russian club before their transfer window closes next month.  Benitez simply said "We are working with different clubs to find a solution".

England and AC Milan midfielder David Beckham has undergone an operation in Finland on the ruptured achilles tendon that he suffered during AC Milan's Serie A league match against Chievo on Sunday.  Professor Sakari Orava, the surgeon who carried out the operation, said the procedure had been "a success", however he added that the severity of the injury means Beckham could be out for up to six months, which would end his hopes of being selected for England's 2010 World Cup squad.  Many England fans will be saddened by the news as they hoped to see him feature in his fourth World Cup finals with the possibilty of a romantic World Cup winning end to David Beckham's international career!

Our winter sale will finish at the end of this month (31 January). So, if you haven't already done so, you have a couple of weeks only left to take advantage of our excellent discounts of up to 50% off our range of Full-Zip Sweat Tops. Whether you are looking for a unique Birthday, Valentines Day or Fathers Day present for someone special in your life or just want to get yourself an exclusive England Sweat Top in preparation for this year's World Cup then simply click here and place your order today.

October may have marked the end of a pretty good summer but it also saw the start of an excellent 'Mid-Season Sale' here at klever kloggs. The Sale gives us the chance to offer some fantastic savings on our full range of unique sweat tops and, dare we say it, a chance for you to snap up some bargain presents for your nearest and dearest this Xmas! Okay so you don't want to think about Xmas yet but with the airing of Xmas ads on tv already we can't deny that it will soon be upon us!  The success of Manchester United, Liverpool FC, Colchester United and the England football team continued this month and our sales reflect this success particularly in the case of Colchester United who are riding high in the English football League 1 at this time. Our social networking presence continues to increase and our viral marketing campaign will soon be finalized and ready for release.

August has been particularly busy thanks to our two week sale followed by the start of the 2009/10 English football season, both events led to a significant increase in sales. Our summer sale was publicised via various channels, by newsletter to our site subscribers, through alerts on Twitter and our social networking pages and via press release. We continue to add relevant content to the site too with the latest Liverpool, Manchester United and Colchester United results and transfer news and player profiles on some of Liverpool and Manchester United's summer signings including Michael Owen and Glen Johnson.

our short, sharp, summer sale begins today and runs for 2 weeks until 14 August 2009. We timed the sale to start as most others were finishing and to coincide with the lead up to the 2009/10 Premier League football season.

as we have stated previously one of the key ways to gain visitors to your website is to continuously add interesting and useful content to it. To this end we have added a number of new pages to the site since we last spoke, as well as generic pages about our clothing we have also added a page detailing 35 ways to increase traffic to� your website (click to read). This appears as part of our endeavour to pass on information we have found useful to anyone else starting out in business at the moment, we have also added player profiles on Manchester United defenders, and twins, Rafael da Silva (click name for details) and Fabio da Silva (click name for details). The social networking side of klever kloggs continues with our number of Twitter followers now reaching three figures! You can follow us too at twitter.com/klever_kloggs and find us on facebook by searching klever kloggs-clothing.

it's mid-April, spring is in swing and the year seems to be flying by. Since the previous blog post more relevant content linked to the places featured on our sweat tops has been added to the site. This content includes player profiles of Liverpool FC footballers Lucas Leiva, David Ngog, Emiliano Insua and Andrea Dossena and Manchester United's Ben Foster and their latest sensation Federico Macheda, for a quick link to any of these profiles just click on the player name. We have also now included a page of customer comments and feedback which you can read by clicking here. April has also seen the launch of a special offer for our 'facebook' friends and offline marketing in Colchester.

although klever kloggs clothing can be worn all year round, the fast approaching Springtime marks the beginning of the ideal time for them to be used as outerwear and a 25% increase in sales so far this month bears this out. The site hits are also up month on month as are entries to the clothing competition, more content has been loaded onto the site too, including profiles of Liverpool FC players Fabio Aurelio, Alvaro Arbeloa and Martin Skrtel along with details of the Colchester United first team. Social networking sites have also been an important focus over the past couple of months.

a very happy and prosperous New Year to all our customers and everyone visiting the website from the klever kloggs clothing brand!

the christmas sale launched last month proved to be a successful strategy with a marked increase in our sales. As well as discounting our products on our own site we featured them on a number of external sites and created a loyalty promotional coupon for the use of those on our mailing list. These various approaches have led to a prosperous end to the year and are looking like making it a Merry Xmas!!

another month has passed since the last post, summer has become Autumn and crunching leaves are being overshadowed by the talk of crunching credit! With this in mind we've decided to absorb some of the costs which would normally be passed onto customers by giving FREE WORLDWIDE DELIVERY on all sweat tops ordered via our website.

it has always been the plan to publish press releases at appropriate times as part of the marketing of the klever kloggs brand and with Autumn now just around the corner the first of these is now due. The past few days have been spent researching press releases, this includes reading previously successful releases from various PR agencies and looking at the way a release should be compiled and the first press release for klever kloggs is now ready and will be made public on Monday.

although ongoing Search Engine Optimization has meant the klever kloggs website currently appears on the first or second page of Google's search results for 51% of the 72 most logical keyword phrases, it's still important to invest in online marketing. In order to support, maintain and improve the 'first page status' of the site for appropriate keyword phrases I have initiated a pay per click campaign on Google this month. I have been pleased with the results so far but it's important to tread cautiously with 'Pay Per Click' as there are many examples of people throwing a lot of money at it with very little return on their investment.

the time has flown by since the last blog entry and already it's now July! June was a busy month on several fronts including, making contact with potential retail outlets, processing orders and particularly heavy online marketing. Many of the pages on the site are now displaying a Google Pagerank as a result of the hours of search engine optimisation (SEO) and the site itself is now present in many different areas of the internet.

the first sweat tops in the klever kloggs collection have arrived and� they look even better than the initial images and pre-production samples. The� production time� was much� longer than first expected and there have been many� hurdles encountered along the way but the end product has proved that it has been worthwhile.

the production� and delivery of the first clothng in the� klever kloggs range is taking� longer than first expected. The� unforeseen issues in the manufacturing process has resulted in the� launch of the brand being delayed.� It's been a very frustrating� time but the signs are that the wait will not be for too much longer and will be well worth it.

the� wait for the first delivery of sweat tops continues but hopefully this should� not be for too much longer! In the meantime the constant website development goes on daily with the klever kloggs site going from strength to strength in terms of content and unique hits.

it's been a testing time recently, once again, the delivery of the initial klever kloggs collection has been further delayed at the eleventh hour!� We should have taken delivery in the past week but a� hold-up with some of the fabric� has put this back to late April. Aside from this� everything else is going well, the website is being updated and added to daily,� the traffic to the site is growing each day and the marketing of the brand continues.

for the past couple of weeks I've been raising the website's profile by including� it in relevant online directories, gaining backlinks and adding new, and updating existing, content. I've also included the site's monthly competition� on a number of external online competition sites which has provoked a great response.� The manufacture of the� first items in the collection has been delayed slightly,� they should now arrive at the end of March� when we will fulfill online orders to date� and send� the prizes to the winners of the monthly competitions.

as well as adding content on a daily basis I have also spent� the past week or so backlinking the klever kloggs website.� To help improve a websites visibility� in internet search engines it's important to have 'backlinks' (links from an external� site to your own site) and the better the quality of� these links the better position a site� is likely to achieve in search engines (the� link quality is defined by the sites popularity).

it goes without saying that businesses that� are partially or fully dependant on people buying online� rely on potential customers being able to find their� websites.� There are numerous� marketing options to help the promotion of websites but� one of the most important things� is to� ensure the� site contains a healthy amount of written content that is both relevant to the products and contains phrases that� customers are most likely to enter into the search engines. To this end I've spent the past week or so increasing the content on this site.

the interest in the klever kloggs products so far has been very encouraging, with a healthy amount of daily hits to the site and a lot of people entering the online monthly competitions to win one of the tops.� With this in mind, and the final samples� signed off and production process underway,� the first set of tops in the klever kloggs collection� have� today been made available to� pre-order with delivery being mid to late March.

today is a milestone for the klever kloggs brand as the pre-production samples arrived and, with some� minor adjustments to the applique, I've been� able to give the go ahead for the manufacture of the first pieces in the klever kloggs collection.� � The approximate delivery� date� is mid March� when the first designs will then be available.

search engine optimisation of the site has been the main focus for the past few weeks,� however, some progress has also been made in the marketing of the brand in a more unconventional� way!� Watch this blog for more details soon!

each time erroneous product samples are sent and corrections needed� the production process is further delayed by the� wait for the receipt of the next set of samples.� The norm is for two or three rounds� of sampling� before clothing items are� ready� to go into production, however,� we are now awaiting� the sixth set of samples.� For this reason the estimated delivery of the first products in the brand is early� March 2008.

the� guy who redesigned the klever kloggs website lives on the other side of the world and, for the past two weeks, we have been in constant contact whilst the site has been reformatted, rejigged, tweaked and uploaded.� To say the look and functionality of the finished item is pleasing would be an understatement!� � The site now has the original, professional look that it has been crying out for.� � Now the� focus is� on optimisation.

the reconstruction of this website continues and the results are very pleasing. My focus now is on optimising the website so that it is recognised by the internet's most important search engines in order to increase traffic.� I'm� following instruction on this� taken from� an excellent book on the subject.� � Once the site is complete� the next task will be to obtain links to it from external sites which is all part of the optimisation process.� The product sampling process� is ongoing...

after� a very enjoyable family holiday in the north of England where� the cottage� we stayed had no mobile phone signal or internet access� it's time to immerse myself back into the business of building a credible clothing brand.� Apart from receiving the final samples the� priority now is to arrange for the new web design to be applied to the site.

starting your own business� can be� an incredibly long drawn out process� fraught with numerous� unforeseen issues and problems some large and some not so large!� � The klever kloggs clothing brand has been� approximately� seven months in the making and at this point we have still not signed off final samples for production and the website is about to undergo a complete facelift,� it's time for a short holiday!

having had about eight different designers enter the web design competition online I was today in a position to choose the winner and so closed the competition a day early to enable payment to the winner before I go off� on a family holiday over christmas.� The competition was an excellent way� of reaching� a cross section of designers, with differing ideas, across the globe and I'd highly reccomend it.

the initial response to the competition web design competition have been very encouraging with some strong entries coming in already.

it's time to give the klever kloggs website a more professional look and feel so today I set up a contest online inviting entrants� to submit their� ideas with a cash prize for the winning design.

having now seen the first klever kloggs sweat top samples in the real, I� think the wording across the chest� needs to be bigger.� I reworked the text on the jpegs I have and sent them through to the manufacturing company.

the 4th set of samples arrived today but were still incorrect!� A combination of� not being surprised, of being� hardened to this scenario� and the fact that the tops are at� least taking some shape has oddly dampened down my frustration.

this evening I discovered that after less than three weeks� the klever kloggs� website is appearing on the first page of� the google search engine for the� generic clothing phrases, 'Manchester sweat tops',� 'Newcastle sweat tops, 'Cambridge sweat tops' and 'Colchester sweat tops', and on� other� pages for 'Liverpool sweat tops' and 'sweat tops'.� I'm not getting too carried away� but it's proof that the work put in� so far is showing some results.

the klever kloggs home page has been in need of something extra to give it a more appealing look.� � I have been working on additions to the existing design and� arranged to meet the web designer� to� upload the new design to the site.� � We also discussed back linking and optimisation ideas for me to� work� on.

when starting a business it's so important to draw on people's experience and seek, and be open to, differing opinions.� With this in mind I've been reading an interesting book regarding online business which has� sound advice.� � As a result of this I� joined an online forum today and immediately saw the benefits with information received from like minded people.

to commemorate� the website going live this week� I decided to run� a competition.� � Five� prizes will be given and each of these will be chosen by the competition winners from� the first� batch of tops produced.� I spent� much of the day setting up the competition page and links and� writing out the rules of the contest.

today� the klever kloggs website has gone live.� Although there is material yet to be added and� amendments to be made it makes� sense to� switch the� website on sooner rather than later. This� allows people like yourselves to view and comment on the site and� at the same time should start� to� give it some recognition on� the numerous internet search engines.

i've been chasing the delivery of the second sweat top production samples for some days.� � This morning I received a return call with assurances that they should arrive by the end of this week?� In the meantime I'm looking at possible affiliate links to the klever kloggs website.

it's a strange irony that there are so many different forms of instant communication today yet so few people in business seem to communicate effectively!� � A new business relies on communication and I'm finding� the lack of it amongst� some suppliers very time consuming and� irritating.

in today's� stressful business world� physically speaking to� anybody by phone is less possible, this tends to leave� the unsatisfactory options of� voice mail� and e mail!� Choosing the second option I've had� a frustrating morning on my laptop but have at least established that the second� sweat top samples� should� arrive around the 10th November.

although I am some distance from the first delivery of the collection I think it's prudent to consider the second phase.� I've started looking� at some of the� designs� that will be added in spring 2008.

the� VAT registration number arrived but still no sign of the second production samples?� After a few phone calls and e mails I learned that the samples arrived from the factory overseas but were� returned by the manufacturer's UK office with some comments.� The fabric� and design features were� incorrect?� It's a trying time and� I imagine� it's only� going to get worse.

i've spent this week exploring� the 'marketing' jungle further.� Reading comments and works of 'experts'� it seems� adwords and pay-per-click� on search engines is one of the more effective forms of advertising today.� As regards the second production samples, the manufacturers now say� these will arrive on Friday.

today is� the first day� back from a 10 day break� in China and the� second set of sweat top production samples I was expecting have still not arrived.� Apart from the� exasperation of chasing delivery of these it's disappointing as this will put back the launch of the initial collection.

i'm off to China tomorrow and spent the last few days chasing� the the second set of sweat top� production samples before I leave.� � These were expected late last week but� so far I've heard nothing.

i designed� a� new� home page for the� website� and� met� the web designer to upload the page and� run through other amendments.� Further modifications are needed but overall I'm pleased with the look and feel of the site.

i designed a magnetic vehicle sign based on the klever kloggs logo for local marketing purposes.� � Having sent the design out� and� obtained quotes� I was reminded that� the door panels on my car are fibreglass!!

i've been� thinking about having the publicity photos for the collection taken in Malta as� my girlfriend has friends and family who would willingly� model the clothing.� I've contacted a number of professional photograpers in Malta, some of whom� seem to quote prices based on� the brand� being foreign?

i logged on to the H.M. revenue & customs website and completed the '30 minute' application for� vat registration.

I managed to� speak to� the manufacturer this morning.� � My fears� are laid to rest with assurances that the development sample material did not represent the material that will be used on the finished article.� Not sure� why it was� sent in the first place?

the website content management system� has been created.� This allows me to begin� to populate the website.

good sense prevails,� my bank� opened the klever kloggs business account.

i've� spent� August� researching� marketing opportunities including PR services, pay per click and social networking sites.� I've also read a number of� books written by respected marketing and branding gurus.

the website design and content� has consumed my time� for a few weeks but the first stage is complete and today I’ve sent it to the web designer.

one of the initial designs� is not working as the town name is too asymmetrical when placed on the garment.� � I've decided to go with a� reserve� design which works well.

this week I met with the two remaining shortlisted� suppliers.� � After careful thought I� place the first order that will launch the ‘klever kloggs’ collection.� � The time frame for sampling and manufacture is longer than I thought but it allows� me� ample time to� concentrate on� the website.

four days on and I’ve still heard nothing from the West Midlands?� I assume this company� find the� idea of internet based companies meeting with a potential client a little baffling?� With my confidence in them shot to bits I arrange meetings with the other two shortlisted companies.� Hopefully� they will not be quite so shy!

for the past few days I have been busy seeking out the most suitable suppliers hased on quality, service, location and price.� I’ve shortlisted three main suppliers whom I would like to meet� and I contact the first of these to arrange a meeting.� The company are based in the West Midlands, at this stage they are my preferred choice.

one of my promising manufacturers based overseas produced a prototype of a ‘klever kloggs’ top complete with arm logo.� � I received photos as attachments of the finished item showing it from a number of angles.� � I� quickly come to the conclusion that my first order will need to be placed with a UK based company who I can meet and speak to face to face!!

much as I support the internet, and applaud the way it opens up the world in terms of business, it can also be� an exasperating experience.� Trying to explain� the design and specification I have in my head to� manufacturers via e mail is proving difficult.� � Today however� I get a breakthrough,� one of the UK agents� sends� a jpeg of the design I am looking for.� I can now forward this to other manufacturers� to show� exactly what it is I am after!

i’m struggling!� UK suppliers manufacturing overseas are very expensive, India and China based manufacturers don’t seem to grasp exactly what I am looking for and Bulgarian manufacturers don’t seem interested??

today a knock at the door brings with it my new laptop.

since the confirmation� of� Voluntary Redundancy� I've been� searching� for sales and marketing and revenue development� vacancies on� jobsites without much success.� Today however, I received an unexpected surprise in the post from my girlfriend� in England....a copy of the book 'Anyone can do it' by the self made multi-millionaire Duncan Bannatyne...

today brings confirmation of the acceptance of my application for Voluntary Redundancy and the� date� for my� flight back to England, 18th May.� My feelings range from relief and� excitement to trepidation� and� fear!! .... after 15 years I'm heading back to Britain.