Lexi Burgess, 25, recently launched her own business from Manchester, making clay mini figurines and selling them on Etsy.
Figurines have included the Very Hungry Caterpillar, personalised fruit with faces and well-known cartoon characters, all lovingly and painstakingly recreated.
Lexi attended Lancaster University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in literature and creative writing, before working as a copy writer for several companies, including a vape shop.
Since May 2021 she has worked full time as a freelance copy writer, before launching her mini company in early 2025.
“I started making clay figurines a year ago, when I was looking for a hobby, so I bought a pack of clay from Amazon. In the beginning with my work obligations, I was making one a month, then I started my Etsy shop two months ago.
“I found I suddenly had more time to dedicate to it as I’m a freelance writer, and AI came into the picture, and changed the freelance writing landscape overnight. It decimated it, so since then I’ve just gone at it.”
While her Etsy shop took off immediately, Lexi says the preparation beforehand was touch and go for a while.
“It was a steep learning curve. There have been peaks and troughs, I got a corporate job for a bit that really cut down on the time I could spend making minis, but when that came to an end, I decided I wanted something more creative. I’ve been a freelancer for five years and it can get quite draining, so I decided I wanted more artistic avenues.”
Lexi waxes lyrical about the benefits of pursuing creative endeavours.
“I honestly think when I turned 25 it unlocked a creative part of my brain, and I really wanted to pursue those things, and then my boyfriend was really encouraging me to set up a stall and sell them to people. I set up one with one listing on, and then three, and then it snowballed from there.”
Despite enjoying several jobs in writing both creative and non-fictional, Lexi was drawn to the world of miniature figurines as another artistic outlet.
“When I think about choosing minis specifically, over any other creative pursuit I could do, I was so initially excited! I really think minis are so cute and inspiring and spark joy, and I love things that inspire cuteness.
“You obviously don’t need loads of space for minis, and they’re more accessible than making massive things.”
Lexi advertises her products through Instagram, TikTok and Etsy.
“I’m a writer by trade so I know tricks to put key words in my Etsy listings for optimising views. I’ve gone through the site with a fine-tooth comb to figure out the algorithms and how the website works!”
Lexi says inspiration for her designs and creations strikes from anywhere.
“For a while I’ve really been into art, so I went to the You, Me and the Balloons Exhibit at Factory International and I’ve recreated the spotty pumpkin from there as a sculpture, earrings and nail art. I’ve recreated The Scream by Edvard Munch now as a portrait, on my wall as part of a mini art gallery. I turned it into a sculpture too.
“For a while I was really obsessed with The Scream and it was an accessible way to try and recreate that or recreate cartoon characters I like. There’s just so much pleasure in making a cute little mini to me!”
The creation process has been interesting and educational to explore for Lexi, particularly when she moved from making her own designs to customer requests.
“The worst mini I’ve made was when a friend asked me to make a clay miniature of Milhouse from The Simpsons and I couldn’t get his nose right! I eventually asked her to pick something else, and she picked Patrick Starr, and I could do that. He was also the most difficult one though, I was trying to recreate him for a year before I started and when I look at the versions from then to now it’s shocking. But it makes me feel good seeing how far I’ve come and how much I’ve improved.
“My favourite one is Oscar the Grouch, for my boyfriend, because we always send each other any funny photos of him we find.”
The creating process has been an interesting facet to the business, Lexi says, as it introduced the challenge of wanting to pursue personal ideas combined with producing work to a high standard and with reliability for customers.
“My process is honestly just to sit down and try and make it and learn as I go. The hardest, most intensive part is making the first prototype as it’s where you learn what’s possible and what isn’t possible.
“I make the first prototype and even if it’s not right I bake it anyway and then I might return to the same design two or three times and add tweaks. I bake them in the oven at 125 for eight minutes.
“I’m a big fan of progressing as you go, because if I spent all my time figuring out the perfect way to do something I’d never do it.”
While the equipment cost and prep may be a stumbling block for larger business ventures, creative endeavours are much more accessible.
“The equipment cost was originally £100 for the basic equipment but now with all the extra things like storage boxes and stands and the little bits I add to experiment, it’s about £200 in total. I’m very privileged as my boyfriend pays for postage to clients, but I add wrapping paper and a nice note for them.”
Lexi’s future looks bright, with plans for further development already brewing.
“I’ve got so many ideas for expansion it almost paralyses me! I’ve started making earrings, I’m making Squidward ones next, and I just bought the equipment I need to make bag charms.
“I want to do a market later this year when I’m more established and get branded packaging.
“I’ve also started creating digital drawings and I want to expand into a brand with all types of art, so I’d go from ‘Lexi Makes Minis’ to ‘Lexi Makes Art’. I see it as a gateway to building the confidence and the platform to go wherever the wind takes me.
“At the beginning my mission was for just me and to have the joy of creating mini things and having people put them in their house. It’s a win-win situation really, as people like buying them and I like making them. It’s not a high entry cost to start and I really get a kick out of it. I love it and the type of people who buy my products are people I know are going to be thrilled with them. There’s no complainers or ‘Karens’, they just share my enthusiasms.”
With so much of current media reporting geared towards the negative fallouts of running businesses, such as Clarify Capital in 2025 reporting figures that 40% of businesses fail in the first year, and up to 49.9% within 10 years, Lexi insists that pursuing a small business as a “side hustle” or for your own creative endeavours can bring fulfilment.
“If you want to start a similar business, take my advice and just do it! There’s a lot of talk about creating a business plan, getting loans and calculating profits, but for something like this it’s better to go for it. I think when you want to make a business out of your creativity and something that makes you happy, people either like it or they won’t.
“I’m a strong believer in if you spend too long waiting for the perfect moment, you will be waiting a very long time. I really faked it until I made it, when I started, I could upload products and regret them two weeks later, but it’s all part of the process. I recently updated one of my most popular products, because I didn’t feel it was as good as it could be. I do think if I waited for ‘the perfect design’ to hit me, two months would go past.”
While most of her clients are in London, Lexi credits the local Manchester Makers Market as a huge incentive to launch her business.
“It opened the door of possibility and made me think other people are doing it too. Some people aren’t even selling handmade presents, they’re bulk ordering things from warehouses, so I started to think there’s a very real possibility I could do this for myself. It’s nice to see a future that is very creative.”
It certainly is.
Follow leximakesminis on Instagram, TikTok and Etsy. Photo: Lexi Burgess
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