Feedback: Grand Re-opening

At the time of going to press at the end of March, April 12 is a red letter day for non-essential retailers (other than Scotland), the all-important date when finally, doors can be flung wide open, and customers welcomed back with open arms.

In the lead up to the big day, gift retailers revealed what they have been doing to up the ante when their shops can finally hang the ‘We’re Open’ sign on the door!

“We have had quite a decent shuffle around in the shop to keep both ourselves and our customers on our toes. I have decided to open with a bang and a full shop of new and existing suppliers,” confirms Bill Nettelfield, owner of Bill & Bert’s in Colchester.

“I have expanded on previous winning suppliers to include Ashleigh & Burwood, Wrendale, Sophie Allport, Besp-oak, DCUK, Gingko and Swole Panda. And, for the first time, I have ordered from some 20 new suppliers, including Mathmos, Mova, Elite, HydroHerb, The Bottled Baking Company and Janie Wilson.”

First Things First: “We are opening with a ‘January sale’ for all those customers who missed out on Christmas decorations etc., straight after Christmas. And as soon as it is sensible, we will be having a couple of late night shopping and drinks events where one will definitely involve mulled wine! As with our re-opening in June last year I’m going with the Bill& Bert’s cartoons in the front windows, but this time, with a sunshine feel about them.” Faster bounce back: “What will trade be like on the April 12 and the rest of the month? Only time will tell. However, I do believe that with the number of vaccines that have already been given, and with the frustration of customers not being allowed to shop properly this year, the bounce back will be far quicker than when we all re opened last June.”

Service is paramount: “We independents now have to offer customer service that the nationals have long forgotten how to, as customers will be looking for service and safety and fun more now than at any time, and it’s the independents who are best placed to provide this.”

Adds Bill: “I’m sure that this year’s Harrogate Home & Gift show will prove to be the most important show in the industry for many, many years.”

Also looking to re-open with a bang is Bradley

in Tavistock and Totnes. “We’re keeping things casual at the moment as we aren’t sure which restrictions and rules will be in place on April 12. However, we’re making lots of big, eye catching changes to the stores that we’re hoping will bring both old and new customers in. We missed out on a grand opening day for our Totnes store, so as soon as we can have an in-store event we will.”

Revamped interior: “What hasn’t been moved?! The shops are being completely changed around. We’ve done the basics - touching up on paint and doing all the fiddly jobs that never get done - but we’ve also fitted some new displays and made way for our soon-to-launch range of clothes and accessories.”

Fashion forward: “We are launching our very first clothing collection, which includes

some exclusive collaborations and items that have never been available in-store before. Some of our favourite new ranges include Pop Icons, which we launched a few weeks ago online. It’s been very popular so we can’t wait for everyone to see how effective it is in-store. We’ve also partnered with a gorgeous new jewellery brand, ranged some great new gifts and homewares, and will have everything looking bright and colourful for Spring/Summer. It’s hard to believe the last time we were open the shops were full of Christmas, so it will be quite a difference once we re-open!”

Making the most of our windows: “We’re planning a vibrant, positive showcase of all our new products We’re still ironing out the details, though we hope we can add to the charm of our towns with a stunning display. A lot of love goes into the local high street, so we’re expecting to see lots of fabulous displays and vibrancy in April.”

“This last lockdown has been a really good opportunity for us to have a good sort out and a long overdue re-vamp of our gift store The Cats Whiskers in Bishops Cleeve which we’ve owned for six years,” explains

Polkadot in Keynsham.

All change: “This third lockdown has seen everything change at the shop, with the units that have been there for some 20 years finally gone! Nothing is certain, but we are moving towards the re-opening with a plan for what we want to achieve,”

“We are extremely excited to hopefully be able to reopen all our shops on April 12, and are focusing our efforts on a memorable and grand reopening, to celebrate all those missed occasions and to show gratitude to our customers for helping towards the survival of our shops,” says Priya Aurora-Crowe, co-owner of six Lark London gift and lifestyle stores.

Giveaways: “We are giving away 250 gift bags to all our customers, per store, to say thank you for all the support during these tough times.”

In store makeovers: “We have also used lockdown time to refurbish our Earlsfield store, by changing the flooring and all the shelving units to fit the Lark look. We have also remerchandised every store with all new products so that the customer experience is one of newness and excitement. Our window displays have also been changed to reiterate the complete sense of change for this new start.”

Last lockdown: “We can only hope that this is the last lockdown we have to endure. Back to bricks and mortar we say at Lark, and we cannot wait to interact with our customers again, go to trade shows and get off our computers!”

“Our grand reopening on April 12 will involve a complete restyle with new window and instore displays,” enthuses Hannah Bishop, co-owner of Cornucopia in Worcester. “New and exciting stock will give us a fresh look, and the aim is for customers to be able to move around and browse displays in a safe and relaxed environment.”

What’s new in store? “Plenty of new signage will remind customers about the importance of social distancing, but in a more relaxed way, and clearly priced goods will help them to shop effortlessly and in a less restricted way. The shop was quite full of stock at Christmas time, but we have now simplified the layout without limiting the choice of goods.”

“We have also implemented a whole new till and EPOS system while in lockdown. This will help to ensure that we have sufficient stock levels for the shop floor and online sales. It will also make ordering stock more efficient so that we have more time to do window displays which is what we enjoy the most.”

New product lines: “In addition, we have worked really hard to source new and exciting goods from new suppliers, while remaining confident that existing and updated ranges from some of our regular suppliers will not disappoint. Meanwhile, we can’t wait for Harrogate Home & Gift in July!”

Eye-catching displays: “Our shop window displays will aim to inspire customers to refresh their homes, with a wonderful selection of vases and glassware and a strong influence of honey bee ranges, from various suppliers, creating an impact. Summer, and thoughts of better times ahead, will be foremost in our minds as we throw open the doors on April 12.”