Why I No Longer Charge VAT on My Breastmilk and Memorial Jewellery supplies by Nikki Lovegrove, keepsake jewellery teacher, business owner and single mum.
I’m so excited to announce to you all that I’ve made a change to my pricing structure, effective immediately. Going on, I will no longer be charging VAT on any of my breastmilk or memorial jewellery supplies. I’ve been adding VAT to my prices since April 2024 and now that’s ended.
What is VAT?
VAT is a type of tax applied to many goods and services here in the UK if the business makes a certain amount. As a VAT-registered business, I was previously required to charge 20% VAT on my products and remit that amount to HMRC every quarter. It cost me a fair bit in accounting, took a lot of my time and effort every three months, plus it caused me untold stress, as well as making UK customers pay 20% more! Lose-lose 🙁 You might need to charge it yourself though, if you’re in the UK and TAKE close to £90,000. That’s not how much you pay yourself, it’s how much customers pay for goods.
“Businesses have to register for VAT if their VAT taxable turnover is more than £90,000. They can also choose to register if their turnover is less than £90,000.”- VAT, or Value Added Tax, HMRC
My New Decision
After truly serious thought, I’ve decided to end charging VAT from today 14th January 2025*. I have asked my accountant to deregister with the HMRC, it’s quite legal, don’t panic! This means the price you see on my products is the end price you pay on the checkout.
This means as a single parent, I’m able to keep a higher portion of the turnover to support my little girls. Two of them have additional needs and I’m working to rebuild our lives after escaping domestic abuse with financial abuse. I kept an eye on my turnover for a year before registering in the first place, then because I thought there was a chance I’d go over £90,000 (UK sales), I decided to register early. This ensured I didn’t have to worry about going over unawares. However, my orders have been pretty steady with lots of repeat business, so I’ve never approached that amount. I’ve never *had to* to charge VAT so now I’m quitting charging it at all. It’s all allowed, and I’ll still keep a regular check on it if I start getting more orders.
Why I No Longer Charge VAT
- Cost effective: I want my keepsake supplies to be accessible to as many people as possible. I want to help you build a non-MLM business of your own where you can help your own clients preserve special memories. Many of my clients are women trying to escape financial abuse like I was. By removing VAT, I hope to make these supplies mementos slightly more affordable. I also want to offset the growing cost of the precious metals
- Simplified: This helps my pricing structure, making it easier for my customers and fairer. Now, UK clients pay the same as international clients at checkout again
- Personal Touch: Creating breastmilk and cremation ashes jewellery is a deeply personal process and I know you want the supplies to be made and curated with care my end. I want the focus to be on the emotional value of the pieces you make, not the stress of analysing VAT!
What Does This Mean For You?
You’ll now see a reduction in the overall price of my jewellery for UK buyers. The price listed is what you pay – no hidden fees at checkout!
Thank You Again
Nikki Lovegrove
CEO and Artist
As always, thank you for supporting my small business Keepsaker Supplies. I’m passionate about supporting anyone and everyone to make a profit with an ethical business. If you’re a UK small business, sole trader or a limited company and you have queries about bookkeeping, VAT or tax please contact my accountant Buhir at Total Books. He will be happy to give you more information about his services. This definitely isn’t an affiliate link… I don’t get paid for recommending Buhir, but he’s saved me a lot of money over the years and I’m always very grateful for his support (especially glad I no longer have to do VAT reporting now haha).
*If any of you DO charge VAT and claim it back from purchases you make from me, you’ll need to stop as of today. Invoices are printable from your My Orders page and will show which orders have charged VAT.
