We set up in November 2008, opening up about a week after it was announced that Britain was officially in recession, we'd already spent a fortune on securing the lease on our shop premises and fitting it out so there was no way we were going to back out at that point, but we couldn't have timed it worse really.
That said, although we're not making a huge amount of money we are holding our own, we've still a long way to go before we get to where we want to be and currently all profits are still being ploughed back into the business on new stock etc.
There is a definite move away from the High Street chain stores in my opinion - large shopping centres are the same the whole country over and while there will always be a great customer base for this, there is a smaller more independent minded customer base out there actively looking for more unusual gifts, and they are prepared to pay for the individuality that shops like us can offer.
Jewellery is our best seller, by quite a long way (ours is all hand made), but we do very well with personalised items and as both my sister and I are able to do this ourselves on just about anything from glass to wood, fabrics, canvasses and cards etc, we have built up a reputation for being able to provide the unexpected. Our customers are mostly local and therefore really like the idea that so much of our stock is actually made by local artists and crafters.
We do, of course, also buy some stock in and are careful to select products which sit well with our handmade and unusual gift range. We as a shop make good profit from these. We also earn income from our 63 artists, charging them a monthly rental fee for their space and a commission on their sales - this income covers almost all our shop rental - although this also means that most of what we take on handmade goods gets handed over to the artists at the end of each month!. We have a waiting list for shelf space in our shop, with jewellery makers being the most prolific of crafters, followed by card makers.
It's definitely not an easy time for any retailer, but when you are simply selling gorgeous things that lots of people might want but nobody really needs it is always going to be tough.
Look at your potential customer base very carefully, factor in all your posible expenses and then double it, work out what you will need to take every day in order to cover those costs and be completely realistic as to how many people willl actually spend in your shop. We get lots of people through our door that say "Oh, what a beautiful shop" spend an hour walking around lookng at everything and then leave having bought nothing. Most of these will come back when they need to buy a present, but it never fails to disappoint when that happens!
You asked would we open a new gift shop in a recession - if we'd known we probably wouldn't have, but I still think we did the right thing and that it will, ultimately, provide us with a nice comfortable living ........... we'll just have to be patient!
