FEATURE The Nosey Pacas
When alpaca farming friends asked artist Phil Capon for a design for a greetings card he didn’t stop just there. The Paca family was drawn, born, and it has its own stories on Twitter. And that’s just the start of it, writes Roz Whistance
If there ever was an on trend animal, it is the alpaca. Witness the amount of alpaca farms which have sprung up, on the Island and nationally: there are over 1,500 in England. There is a whole trade show devoted to alpacas at the National Exhibition Centre, no less.
So Islanders Debbie and Phil Capon had an idea: one which seems set to go places.
“Friends with a large farm in Kent were looking to diversify, and began farming alpacas,” explains Debbie. “They have a farm shop and mentioned it would be good to have some humorous alpaca greetings cards . . .”
Phil is a creative director in advertising so he didn’t just come up with a funny card: he devised an entire Alpaca family – The Nosey Pacas. Grandpa Paca, Mama Paca, Papa Paca, Peter Paca, Poppy Paca, and Baby Pea. And with the characters come stories.
So far, so frivolous. The eight greetings cards and postcards were soon joined by wrapping paper – watch this space for The Nosey Paca rap – and notebooks, with t-shirts currently being formulated by a lady in Totland. More products will follow. “The NEC show was an unbelievable success!” says Debbie. “We sold all the
cards we took, including to an alpaca farm in Portugal.”
But having created the characters they seemed to take on a life of their own. Phil and Debbie have a background in television and suddenly realised they had potential for the next hit on CBeebies. “Poppy Paca is ambitious, she wants to be a famous artist (like Paca Pacasso!) but only has three colours in her paint box. Which colours does she mix, and what does she get . . . ?”
The educational possibilities enshrined in the three-generation family, as well as the endearing nature of alpacas, be they cartoon characters or real live animals, seem set to give this venture legs. Certainly The West Wight Alpaca Farm at Wellow is just one to have taken the products into its new farm shop. Now in partnership with their Kent friends, Anne and Rob Clifton-Holt, products using the alpaca hair will follow, and a Maize Maze featuring the Nosey Pacas family will spring up at Hagueland Farm, on the Romney Marsh in Kent in the summer.
You can even follow the Nosey Pacas on Twitter. “Phil is writing each character a developing story. It’s really fun to follow!” Take a look at the Nosey Pacas on the website:
www.thenoseypacas.com
Advertising Call (01983) 861 007
May / June 2012 81
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