A cancer survivor and memorial goods shop founder, is using her experience to provide support for bereaved families.
Nicky Sherwood, founder of Twickenham-based Angel and Dove sells a range of funeral products and sympathy gifts — from hampers to remembrance jewellery and memorial service goods.
During her battle with cancer in 2013, she met many friends undergoing treatment who have since died, leading Nicky to endeavour to provide support for those suffering similar losses.
Nicky said: “After my treatment, I started seeing things differently — my priorities changed.
“I had lost a few friends going through chemotherapy and so I became quite interested in the idea of a ‘good death’.”
Following her treatment’s success, she started volunteering at the Princess Alice Hospice in Twickenham where the inspiration for Angel and Dove struck.
She said: “I found it really rewarding and I suppose I fell in love with the funeral industry, which always sounds really weird.
“But being able to support people when they’re at their most vulnerable, and know that you’ve made a difference to them and their experience, is so important.”
After working with different funeral service providers, Nicky added that she feels funerals need to be brought into the modern age, and so Angel and Dove began providing funeral-centered goods that celebrate life in an innovative, positive way.
She said: “There wasn’t really a lot of people doing business for funerals in a modern, contemporary way, it was very sort of Victorian, it’s one of the industries that hasn’t changed for 100 years or so.”
After covid made in-person memorials impossible, Angel and Dove endeavoured to help people stay connected in remembrance by offering thoughtful, postable gifts.
This aim led Angel and Dove to what it is today, with their wide range of gifts providing an alternative to the traditional flowers.
Nicky said: “I think it is nice to have something you can hold on to, a lot of our products are designed with the idea of capturing memories.
“I just really love that people’s stories and lives are being captured for posterity and forever really.”
For more information, visit Angel and Dove’s website.
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