Gift Focus - Sep/Oct 2019 (Issue 115)

141 RETAILER INTERVIEW Love what you sel l Jo Barber, owner of No.14 Ampthill gift shop in Bedfordshire talks expansion, the importance of supporting your local community and choosing the right products for your shop When did you open in your first location, and what were your reasons for setting up the shop? We first opened our doors in April 2011, a tiny shop off the beaten track in Ampthill. I’d wanted my own shop for a while but was ‘trapped’ in the big corporate job with a great salary, pension, healthcare and car. It wasn’t that I was unhappy with my job, I just felt I needed to ditch the long commute and get a better work life balance. I now work more hours than ever, but I love it! Your first shop was called The Stationery Boutique and then you opened Home & Gift Store, so how did No.14 come about? The two shops were within easy walking distance of each other and very much focused on their own stock and their own customers. After a couple of years of hearing customers say they’d prefer everything under one roof, I decided to give it more thought. One shop was doing better than the other, and that was the smaller of the two, so it was a huge risk to close that one and put everything in the bigger shop. I’m so glad we did, it’s so much easier to manage, we’re in a great location, plenty of storage space and the shop just has a great feel about it How did you choose your bricks and mortar location? The original shop was chosen based on size, price and availability, there was no point having something too big if I couldn’t afford to fill it. It was a bit quirky and that suited the look I was going for. The current shop where we trade from today was my dream shop, a perfectly symmetrical old brick building opposite Waitrose. I’ve loved the building for years, so as soon as it became available, I had to have it! What have been the biggest challenges of shop life? When you start to grow and need to work on your business, rather than in the business, it’s hard. I enjoy both aspects in equal measures and love being in front of our customers but I also know that I’m the one who’s responsible for making sure we’ll still be as successful this time next year. The hours, especially in November and December can be really challenging. Thankfully, I have a great team and a supportive hubby. How do you try and stay involved in the local community? We’re all about the local community. We sponsor many local organisations and events, we’re the preferred ticket outlet for the majority of what’s happening in Ampthill and we give as much back as we can to those who support us, whether that’s volunteering for the local festival or supplying raffle prizes for schools. How would you describe your customer base? Loyal, very loyal, and a lot of them have become good friends. Without customers we’re nothing, so we do everything we can to keep them coming back Describe your product offering. What do you look for in new items? Our products are good quality, current and a little bit different. We’re not a serious shop, we like people to have a giggle when they walk around, some of our stock is a bit edgy but we mix it 