retailer spotlight
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK Launching a new retail shop is never an easy challenge, especially with wellestablished competitors just around the corner. For Style Mobility’s Directors Dominic Goldsmith and Simon West however, it is a challenge the pair relishes. THIIS caught up with the East Coast’s latest mobility retailer to find out more about the new venture.
B
ritain’s East Coast is no stranger to mobility shops, so when directors Dominic and Simon West decided to launch Style Mobility in the town of Great Yarmouth, they did so with full knowledge of the competition surrounding them. This did not deter 30-year-old Dominic however, who aims to use a range of skills he has developed working in different sectors to deliver something special to the area. “I originally started in the hospitality industry, working as a restaurant manager, so I learned a great deal about customer service, but the hours were pretty unsociable and the pay wasn’t great,” explained Dominic. “Instead, I tried my hand at sales in the home improvement sector. Even though I really enjoyed sales, the industry was really high pressure and quite forceful which didn’t sit well with me at all.” It was then that he applied for a job at a local mobility shop on the East Coast and got his first taste of the industry, as well as meeting his future business partner Simon. “The mobility sector really agreed with me,” he continued. “I went to Rehacare and saw what was happening in the industry and realised there was a lot to be excited about.” After working for the retailer for 18 months, Dominic and Simon realised there were certain things they would do differently if they had their own shop and so decided to take the plunge and set one up, opening the doors to Style Mobility in September 2017. “The previous company I worked for are a great company but I found them to be costly and quite unreliable at times for their customers in certain respects,” said Dominic.
10 | www.thiis.co.uk
The store showcases a stylish adapted bathroom
“People buying these products need good customer service and they need reliability as the products play such a major role in their lives. So that’s why we went on our own. The idea that drives us is offering the right products at a fair price, combined with high-quality, hospitality-based customer service where nothing is too
much trouble.” Stocking mobility scooters, powered wheelchairs, profiling beds, rise & recline chairs and more, the new retail store features three showrooms; a main showroom at the front displaying scooters and two smaller ones. One of the showrooms is for furniture, whilst another contains
“We take a lot of our inspiration from car showrooms. They are clean, tidy, modern and always look professional.” DOMINIC GOLDSMITH