This time last year I made a public plea for support. It is a horrible situation to be in, and unfortunately, I find myself in the same position again. January was difficult enough and we just managed to scrape through, however, so far February has been a disaster.
You know I wear my heart on my sleeve and I find honesty to be the best policy! I have recently settled a VAT liability and still have a balance of rent to pay, I have stock to pay for and that is before any new season deliveries start arriving. I simply need to collect in cash in order to keep going. We’ve seen a drop in trade which I blame partly on the weather, people still paying for Christmas, some are waiting for new season, and most of all, the hike in the cost of living. We are only now starting to pay for the Covid crisis which was always going to come at some time. I’m feeling it too – my weekly shopping bill has definitely increased and almost every utility has increased, which isn’t being balanced with an increase in wages. So I do understand – I feel guilty because I am aware of the struggles.
However, business is business and I will fight on – it’s survival of the fittest and if that means that I have to make this plea to rescue my business then that’s what I’ll do. Almost every regular customer says “it must be so difficult but we can’t lose you Karen, we love this shop!” – honestly I don’t want to succumb to the situation but it may be out of my hands – the smallest purchase makes all the difference, a headband, a scarf or bracelet – so if you are looking for gifts or think you could afford a bargain, a birthday treat or maybe just haven’t been in for a while, PLEASE remember us. There are also bargains on the sale page of the website to browse through. Tell all of your friends, drag them in and help us fight on.
Another way to help is to like and share my social media posts – this really helps to spread awareness – it’s a free advert for me, so please follow us on Instagram and Facebook and just click on that “like” and “share”.
With the exception of trousers and accessories, almost all of our stock is now half price or certainly have a reduction offer. There’s really little else I can do – I appreciate that sizes are limited which is another struggle for me – we seem to have a good deal of size 16/18 and small and large footwear, so if this is you or you have friends this size, please spread the word and take a look.
This cardigan is an example of a great bargain – it’s quite heavyweight, longline and comes in this charcoal grey – it was £78 and is now just £39 but at the moment we only have sizes16 and 18 available.
I’ll end on a thank you – I know some of you have already been in and supported. I am not at the shop every day so I don’t see you all, but I do see the takings every day and believe me, every penny counts and I appreciate all custom, however small.
Until next week, take care of each other and be kind.
Our website is available for online orders, click and collect and delivery.
