Rachel Watkyn, a multi-award-winning entrepreneur, is the founder and managing director of the Tiny Box Company, the United Kingdom’s leading online gift packaging e-commerce company that specialises in environmentally-friendly products. Despite her significant achievements, including being the most successful female entrepreneur on Dragon’s Den, she surprisingly does not have a Wikipedia page.
Watkyn was born in London on 14th February 1974, making her 49 years old as of October 2023. Her early years were challenging; she spent her childhood in foster care due to abuse from her biological parents, before moving to Sierra Leone at the age of 11 with her adoptive parents. There, she experienced extreme poverty and violence due to the civil war, before returning to England at 18 and working various jobs.
Despite the hurdles, Watkyn’s entrepreneurial spirit shone through. She started her business journey in 2007, selling jewellery online, and quickly spotted a market gap for recycled and eco-friendly packaging. In 2009, she launched the Tiny Box Company from her bedroom, using £1500 of her savings. That same year, she secured £80,000 of investment from Theo Paphitis and Peter Jones on Dragon’s Den, in exchange for a 40% stake in her business.
Watkyn’s life has not only been marked by professional success but also by personal resilience. She has overcome cancer twice, endured the loss of her adoptive father to suicide, and steered her business through various crises, including flooding, a major IT hack, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite these adversities, she has remained unwavering and used her experiences to motivate others.
Her family background is as diverse as her life experiences. Watkyn’s biological parents hailed from Jamaica and India, but she was raised by her adoptive English parents who worked as missionaries in Sierra Leone. She has two adoptive brothers from Sierra Leone and is married to Paul Watkyn, her business partner at the Tiny Box Company. They met at a church event in 2008, got married in 2010, and have two children, Joshua (born in 2011) and Grace (born in 2013). They reside in East Sussex with their pet dog, Lola.
Watkyn’s remarkable journey is a testament to her resilience and entrepreneurial prowess. From her childhood struggles to her professional achievements, she has emerged as a significant figure in the world of business and sustainability, a testament to the power of determination and resilience.
