Retailer Face To Face: Austins Newton Abbot

Family-owned independent department store Austins, just shy of its milestone 100th anniversary, was the winner of this year’s Greats Best Department Store Retailer of Gifts category, with third generation David Austin currently at the helm and ambitious to drive the business forward.

From humble beginnings, four huge Austins stores now dominate the market town’s landmark ‘clock tower’ square, making the retailer the largest independent, family-owned department store in the South West.

“My dream was always to create a mini John Lewis for the West country,” David told PG&H.

Independently owned Austins is a real life rags to riches story, the retail journey of three generations of the Austin family that began when a somewhat impoverished Robert Austin, raised in London’s East End, lost the lease on his small drapers shop in Romford, Essex. His criteria was to find an alternative outlet which was freehold and was also adjacent to Marks & Spencer’s Penny Baazar, which he had the foresight to see would become a major player in high street retail. (Ironically, it would have surely made Robert very proud, that Austins’ current owner, his grandson David, recently bought that very same Marks & Spencer building, more of which later).

By chance, Robert’s son Charles, who had joined his father in the business, spotted a run-down freehold drapery and haberdashers store in Newton Abbot, next door to Marks & Spencer, while on holiday. It ticked all the boxes, and together with his father, they subsequently relocated to South Devon on 10 March 1924, with the rest being department store history.

In the ensuing years, retail entrepreneurs Robert and Charles, (“who was very forward looking and intent on developing the business and taking it forward,” explains David), went on to acquire additional vacant buildings as they became available. These included the former Globe hotel (now an Austins dedicated, standalone homewares store selling cookshop, small domestic appliances and tableware, as well as linens and soft furnishings on the top floor); the Courts furniture shop (now an Austins furniture, bedding and carpet store); an enormous toy store - arguably the largest in Devon - that also houses a brand new sports and sportswear department on the top level; and Newton Abbot’s former Santander building which was acquired seven years ago. It’s this acquisition that has given Austins its flagship fashion store corner location. (Interestingly, the original Austins occupied what is now the cosmetics department).

Austins is proud of its eco friendly credentials that include solar panels and LED lighting across all four buildings. “We also recycle and re-purpose as much as we can,” highlights David, who has been a member of Friends of the Earth for the past 35 years.

The portfolio expansion has happened largely under David’s watch since he took over the reins in the1990s, where he has continued his grandfather’s and father’s vision of Austins being modelled on Selfridges in London. Although in separate buildings, all four Austins outlets link, and “hang together” as David puts it, creating an over arching, full line department store - with the exception of brown goods, electricals and fitted kitchens - offering everything else you would expect a 60,000 sq ft department store to sell over nine floors and four buildings, to include, gifts, greeting cards and stationery, as well as a recently refurbished, rebranded cafe. “It’s become Newton Abbot’s social hub,” comments David.

So where does gifting fit into the mix? “We first introduced gift products into our flagship fashion store three years ago,” explains merchandise director Paul Lewis,

who spent 34 years in various senior roles at John Lewis in Southampton and Reading, subsequently joining Bradbeer’s department store in Romsey, and then Austins in 2018.

Responsible for store planning, refitting, layouts, merchandising and budgeting, among many other hands on roles, he works closely with David across all four stores, which he says are akin to independents in their approach, their ambience, and their friendly, helpful staff, many of whom are long standing members of the retail team. For example, senior manager Debbie Maloney has been with Austins for 43 years and looks after daily operations. She is also buying manager for toys and sports.

Positioned on the ground floor of the fashion store, leading home fragrancing and bath and body brands include Wax Lyrical, Marmalade of London, Heyland & Whittle, Wrendale Designs and Heathcote & Ivory. “Although the majority of our buying is done through the UK buying group Association of Independent Stores - AIS - where possible, we try to source products that have been made in Britain, especially those that are made locally,” confirms Paul.

Across fashion accessories and bags, eye-catching displays feature Powder and Ellie Beaumont, whose bags with interchangeable straps are very popular with Austins customers. “Roka, a new addition in the bag sector, has been another big hit,” confirms Paul, while Jellycat’s quirky plush is an indisputable winner. “It’s one brand we couldn’t do without, as customers can find gifts for babies and children, as well as older age groups, to include mums and grandmas. The products are collectable and ageless, encouraging repeat business.”

With the cost-of-living crisis dominating the headlines, how is David feeling about gift buying in the run up to Christmas? “We’ll be fine,” he says confidently. “For us, it’s been tough on the toy side, as unfortunately, some families are struggling, but it’s a broad economic church and people will still want to treat others this Christmas. Plus, our prices are at the lower end. So, we’ll kick off Christmas, as we do every year, with a big, after-hours event for customers during the first week of November.”

As he puts it: “overall, Austins is the hub of the town, and it feels very special to be the anchor store. Although we had some difficult decisions to make after the first lockdown in 2020, and unfortunately had to let some staff go, as well as reducing our opening hours, I feel that we navigated it well. As an independent business, we can react quickly and make our own considered choices. We are a ‘can do’ retailer, and therefore remain optimistic about the future of high street retail, with our customers first and foremost at the heart of everything we do. Everyone who comes into our stores gets a friendly welcome and exemplary service, which means that people buy from us with confidence.”

As for what’s in the pipeline to take the business forward, the adjacent Marks & Spencer store, which David invested in as a freehold property in April 2022, gives Austins the option of opening a fifth retail store in four years time, when the current tenant moves out. Austins is also aiming to pull in a younger shopper, with brands such as Bomb Cosmetics among the newer ranges. So how proud would David’s grandfather and father be to hear that Austins won the Best Department Store category in The Greats awards this year? “Having built the Austins brand from nothing they would both be delighted!” enthuses David. “Our success at the awards was totally unexpected, a fantastic achievement for us and another milestone in our incredible retail history.”

l In the early days of his career, David had a brief spell as a graduate trainee with the John Lewis group, working for John Barnes in North London. l Before joining the family retail business, he studied piano at the Royal Academy of Music in London. l David says that music remains a wonderful part of his life. “I still practice the piano every single day, and take a keyboard on holiday,” he reveals.