Hakuhana club case studies – 2

Handmade Jewellery — Recycled Silver, Taken Online

Handmade Crafts / E-commerce | Engagement began: 2020 or later

The Brief

Petrina worked with a craftsperson making handmade jewellery from recycled silver cutlery, designing the operational setup needed to take the business online.

The Approach

Petrina built out the online operations for the business, giving the craftsperson a proper e-commerce presence to sell a distinctive, sustainability-led product.

RESULTS

Moving online increased sales by 48%.

Garden Rooms / Outbuildings | Engagement began: 2018

The Brief

In 2018, a client building bespoke, high-quality garden rooms wanted to expand beyond one-off custom builds into a wider retail presence — specifically through luxury department stores rather than mass-market retailers, sold via an online catalogue.

The Approach

Petrina designed the route to market for the expansion, positioning the product for luxury department store partnerships and an online catalogue presence, rather than a supermarket or mass-retail approach.

RESULTS

The client successfully expanded into other sectors, including several department stores.

Mining & Export | Engagement began: 2017

The Brief

In 2017, an established business owner acquired a salt mine in Pakistan and brought Petrina in to help build out the operational side: mining, selling, and exporting the product.

The Approach

Petrina enlisted a team of professionals to help build the required infrastructure, and arranged for the necessary machinery to be imported into the region, navigating the security and customs controls required for the operation. She also secured an investor for the venture. Once the operational and funding foundations were in place, Petrina handed the model over to the client to execute.

RESULTS

The client successfully took the model forward and ran the operation, before stepping back from the business.

Mineral Resources | Engagement began: 2017

The Brief

The same client from the salt mine venture acquired land containing a hill of green clay, initially planned for wholesale beauty tubs aimed at the cosmetics industry. When progress stalled, Petrina was brought in to find out why — and what the real opportunity was.

The Diagnosis

Petrina requested the chemical lab results for the clay and brought in a team of technicians and specialists to properly assess it, rather than continuing to pursue the original beauty-industry plan without fully understanding the material.

The Approach

Petrina arranged a helicopter survey of the hill to assess the scale of the deposit. The analysis concluded that the clay contained a base chemical relevant to manufacturing and aerospace applications — repositioning the opportunity entirely, from a cosmetics product to a potential industrial-grade material.

RESULTS

Petrina’s role concluded once this assessment and repositioning were complete, with the findings handed back to the client to pursue further. As with the salt mine venture, the client later stepped back from the business, and Petrina is not aware of what happened afterward.

Food Supply / Manufacturing | Engagement began: 2015–2019

The Brief

Petrina designed a framework to supply good-quality food products to football team cafeterias across the UK.

The Approach

Petrina built the operational framework needed to supply teams consistently and at quality, giving the business a scalable model to grow from a single supply arrangement into a wider manufacturing operation.

RESULTS

The framework worked: the business went on to supply various football teams with their food product, doubled the size of their factory, brought in bespoke machinery, and has since exported internationally.

Holiday Parks / Leisure | Engagement began: 2026

The Brief

A holiday park owner in Kent wanted to make ownership more accessible to holidaymakers, without pushing them into heavy-interest finance to get there.

The Approach

Petrina designed a system allowing more holidaymakers to become owners without relying on high-interest finance products.

RESULTS

The system is currently going through the client’s legal team for review, given the regulatory implications of effectively creating a financial product — and the need to manage the relationship with their existing funding partner carefully. This engagement is in progress.

Distilling / Spirits | Engagement began: 2023

The Brief

In 2023, a couple who had been made redundant wanted to start a distillery. Petrina designed the blueprint, business plan, and operations to get them there.

The Approach

Petrina built out the full foundation for the business — from the initial blueprint through to the operational plan needed to actually run a distillery.

RESULTS

The distillery launched to strong popularity and went on to secure investors. The business now runs on multiple revenue streams: trading at festivals, and renting out their stills to larger distilleries during busy periods.

Cleaning Services | Engagement began: 2025

The Brief

A household cleaning company, already running with 25+ staff, wanted to expand further. Petrina was brought in to design the blueprint and operations needed to support that growth.

The Approach

Petrina built out the blueprint and operational structure to support expansion, covering sales, marketing, and operations as a joined-up growth plan rather than piecemeal changes.

RESULTS

The company successfully expanded its operations across sales, marketing, and ops, building on its existing 25-staff base.

Business Coaching | Engagement began: 2026

The Brief

A business coach needed more bookings — but the real issue wasn’t volume, it was fit. They needed to be booking corporate clients rather than SMEs.

The Diagnosis

Petrina identified that simply generating more bookings wouldn’t solve the underlying problem; the coach needed a system that specifically targeted the right kind of client for their business.

The Approach

Petrina designed a booking system built around attracting the right audience — corporate clients — rather than optimising purely for volume.

RESULTS

The coach is now booking regularly with corporate clients.

Financial Consulting | Engagement began: 2026

The Brief

A financial consultant needed more bookings. Petrina was brought in to build a system to drive that growth.

The Approach

Rather than a generic marketing push, Petrina drilled down to identify the consultant’s ideal customer base and designed a bespoke system with a direct route to market, built specifically around reaching that audience.

RESULTS

The consultant is now doing well, with a steady flow of bookings from the right client base.

Industrial / Manufacturing | Engagement began: 2024

The Brief

A large-scale industrial unit faced a takeover approach from another company — one the workforce was strongly against. Petrina was brought in to find another way forward.

The Diagnosis

With the workforce firmly opposed to the takeover, Petrina recognised the need for a viable alternative path that didn’t rely on selling out to resolve the company’s challenges.

The Approach

Petrina designed blueprints for a way forward that kept the business independent, giving leadership a credible alternative to the takeover.

RESULTS

The company did not sell out and instead restructured, preserving its independence.

Public Sector / Social Care | Engagement began: 2015–2019

The Brief

Petrina carried out an audit of a council care system, tasked with finding efficiencies without compromising the safety of vulnerable clients.

The Approach

Petrina identified ways to reduce costs within the system while keeping safeguarding at the centre of any changes — ensuring savings didn’t come at the expense of client protection.

RESULTS

The audit identified potential savings of £160,000 per year. The council cited capacity constraints and did not implement the recommendations.

Further Case Studies: How Petrina Diagnoses and Fixes Stalled or Broken Businesses

Founder & Managing Director, Hakuhana

Regulatory Oversight Body — Independent Governance for a Staffing Corporation

Staffing / Corporate Governance | Engagement began: 2020

The Brief

A staffing corporation needed a way to ensure it operated lawfully and fairly, with proper oversight built in rather than relying on internal self-checks.

The Approach

Petrina designed a separate regulatory entity from scratch, complete with its own board, tasked with overseeing the corporation and conducting regular audits and checks to ensure lawful and fair operation.

RESULTS

The body operates on a hybrid model — annual in-person meetings, ongoing online team meetings, and access to quarterly reports, plus the ability to request any further information needed if a problem is spotted.

Curated Retail (Vintage, Antiques & New) | Engagement began: 2020

The Brief

Petrina helped build an online retail store from a small initial investment, curating a mix of vintage, antique, and new products.

The Approach

Petrina designed the business to sell across various apps and platforms rather than relying on a single storefront, supported by a small but effective social media presence to build a following around the curated product mix.

RESULTS

The business now turns over regular funds and, while still small, regularly sells out weekly stock. It has built a strong, loyal fanbase across its social media and sales channels.

Business Training | Engagement began: 2020

The Brief

Petrina designed a business training consultancy built around a hybrid operating model.

The Approach

Petrina structured the consultancy to run on a hybrid basis, combining in-person and remote elements to deliver business training flexibly.

RESULTS

The consultancy works well at small scale, running successfully on the hybrid model as designed.

Accountancy / Business Rescue | Engagement began: 2021

The Brief

An accountancy firm wanted to build a standalone business rescue consultancy, using their existing accounting expertise as the foundation.

The Approach

Petrina developed the branding and marketing needed to position the firm’s existing skills as a specialist business rescue offer, rather than starting from scratch on the underlying expertise.

RESULTS

Client results are confidential given the accountancy context.

Cargo & Shipping | Engagement began: 2022

The Brief

In 2022, a startup approached Petrina wanting to disrupt the luggage shipping market — offering holidaymakers a cheaper, easier way to send their luggage ahead of travel.

The Approach

Petrina designed the business model needed to bring the concept to market, positioning it as a lower-cost, more convenient alternative to existing luggage shipping options.

RESULTS

The business is making a fair profit.

Sales Booking Services | Engagement began: 2025

The Brief

A client starting afresh wanted to build a booking company for consultants — handling sales bookings — with a brand designed from the outset to be franchised.

The Approach

Petrina designed the brand and business model with franchising in mind from day one, giving the client a structure built to replicate rather than a single-site business retrofitted for expansion later.

RESULTS

The business has launched with the franchise-ready brand and model in place.

Outbound Sales / Contact Centre | Engagement began: 2024

The Brief

Petrina designed a B2B outbound contact centre business, calling from lists on behalf of clients, taking bookings, and updating diaries directly.

The Approach

Petrina built the operational model for the contact centre, structuring it around outbound calling, appointment booking, and diary management as a service for other businesses.

RESULTS

The contact centre is now fully booked every day.

Business Consultancy / Due Diligence | Engagement began: 2024

The Brief

Petrina designed a consultancy offering pre-contract due diligence for businesses — going beyond standard credit checking to cover reputational risk and cultural or operational fit.

The Approach

Petrina built the service around three pillars: assessing reputation and fit alongside financial standing, helping clients negotiate the best possible contract terms, and supporting them through the volume of paperwork involved in getting a deal over the line.

RESULTS

The consultancy has launched with this full-service model in place.

LinkedIn Training / Consultancy | Engagement began: 2015–2019

The Brief

An established LinkedIn consultant wanted to expand his business but had no set system for training people — results were inconsistent, dependent entirely on his own instinct rather than a repeatable process.

The Diagnosis

Petrina identified that the business’s growth ceiling wasn’t demand — it was the lack of a documented, teachable method behind the consultant’s expertise.

The Approach

Petrina documented what the consultant actually did, turning his knowledge into a structured manual and playbook. Once that foundation was working, she built a business plan to franchise the model.

RESULTS

The consultancy now has a documented playbook and a franchise-ready business plan in place.

Laundry Services | Engagement began: 2021

The Brief

Petrina designed a service wash (laundry services) business.

The Approach

Petrina built the operational model for the laundry service business, giving it a foundation to establish itself and grow steadily across the region.

RESULTS

The business is still going strong, now serving 126 clients across Kent.

Linen Wash & Hire | Engagement began: 2022

The Brief

Petrina designed a linen wash and hire business serving event locations across Kent.

The Approach

Petrina built the operational model to supply and service linen for a range of event venues, giving the business a repeatable process to serve multiple locations at once.

RESULTS

The business now supplies 20+ locations across Kent.

Wedding & Events Venue | Engagement began: 2019

The Brief

Petrina designed a wedding venue business from scratch, built to offer a complete, all-in-one wedding experience rather than a bare venue hire.

The Approach

Petrina built the venue’s full-service offering: venue hire, ceremonies, disco, food, entertainment, parking, and wedding cars, alongside an on-site restaurant and bar that operated independently of weddings, giving the business multiple revenue streams beyond wedding bookings.

RESULTS

The venue maintained steady bookings, hosting around 6 weddings a month alongside other events, before the venue was sold in 2025.