With Christmas 2023 done and dusted, GiftsandHome.net asked a selection of gift indies for their post-Christmas report.
“We received our first Christmas order from Shoeless Joe towards the end of August and almost as fast as we were unpacking the boxes we were selling the items,” confirmed Janet Hartree, owner of Ewe and Me and Ewe and Me Too in Grantown-on-Spey. “Therefore, for us, Christmas started at the end of August, and the joy was that it never really stopped. The first two weeks in November were a little quieter, but that gave us a chance to check stock and re-order. We then branched out with our Christmas stock and cards, selling up on last year.”
Added Janet: “During the two months leading up to Christmas, the weather was pretty awful with rain almost every day. However, the rain did not deter people coming out and spending. We had visitors to our town – mostly Europeans – almost all of the time, and they were very appreciative of our shop and what we had to offer. Our Christmas buying was based on the financial climate at the time, keeping an eye on prices and quantities. However, that meant we had to keep reordering as stock was selling! We also found that people seemed to enjoy shopping more locally this Christmas and appreciated the care they received. Sales were across the board – scarves, jewellery, toiletries, games and children’s gifts. So all in all a good Christmas, and far better than expectations.”
Also confirming a strong Christmas was Samantha Gibbs, owner of three Nest gift stores in Stoneygate, Stoughton Grange, and Thurlaston Garden Centre and Tearoom. “Christmas started as Halloween ended – if not before – and kicked off with Christmas decorations being really strong, which never slowed down, with the last week far busier than I had anticipated.”
Continued Samantha: “Our ordering had been confident, so we were covered, but there was a longer surge of orders and customers than I had expected, and with Christmas falling on a Monday, it certainly kept sales coming in. If only Christmas could fall on a Monday every year! We didn’t really know what to expect with Christmas Eve falling on a Sunday, but that certainly worked in our favour, as all three shops were open and all were busy. Many weren’t last minute shoppers but organised people who came in for a browse and spent, so it was a win win!”
Added Samantha: “I do think some very, very wet and windy days made a huge difference to footfall though, and as frustrating as that always is, I was equally glad that it wasn’t the frost and snow we’ve seen in previous years. Women’s accessories, toys, games and puzzles, and jewellery were our strongest categories, along with Christmas decorations,” highlighted Samantha.
“Christmas was better than expected with a last minute flurry the week leading up to Christmas Day,” confirmed Jon May, co-owner of Mooch Gifts & Home in Bewdley and Stourport-on-Severn. “As we predicted, the value of money spent on each individual person was down, due to the cost-of-living crisis taking a hit on people’s purses. However, the volume of people through our doors, and individual transactions, was up, with people making a concentrated effort to “shop local’.Our main windows supported the Greeting Card Association’s #cardmitment campaign. It featured wild animals sending cards, with graphics saying: ‘This Christmas Send a Card Deliver A Smile’. Candles from The Bewdley Candle Co, jigsaws from Gibsons and Moorland Pottery mugs, along with Village Pottery and LED mushroom lamps from Joe Davies were our best-selling lines.”
Down in Devon and Cornwall, Christmas at Brocante was a slow burn until the last week. “But the time between the big day and New Year was very good for us, with an influx of visitors to the West Country,” confirmed Kieron Cockley, co-owner of gift and lifestyle store Brocante, which has seven shops in Cornwall and one in Devon. “To encourage trade before December we did an evening event in our shop in Charlestown that was formerly an old chapel. We had a choir doing carols, and also played disco tunes to create a festive atmosphere. This is something we will do more of as it was great fun, and I think that it’s the point of difference that people want from independents at the moment.”
Continued Kieron: “Good sellers were candles and diffusers, in traditional Christmas scents and packaging, along with our range of Christmas mugs and jugs. Tree decorations always sell through. Strangely, we found larger items of furniture, mirrors and prints sold well after Christmas, as people wanted to treat themselves. Perhaps consumers are now making more considered purchases.”
At Lark London, which has 19 gift and lifestyle stores across South and West London, as well as Surrey, co-owner Priya Aurora-Crowe pointed out that Christmas started later at the stores, not really kicking off until December 8. “Although there was a drop in spending, we found that people were buying less but were buying better, with self-care remaining a strong category for us.”
However, Christmas wasn’t a winner for all gift retailers. Greg Rose, co-owner of Maybugs, which has gift and lifestyle stores in Bexhill-on-Sea, Eastbourne and Hailsham, admitted: “Christmas was impossibly tough for us this year. It didn’t seem to kick off until mid-December, and even then, sales were sluggish at best. The endless wet weather in November saw a significant decline in sales for us which we hoped we’d pull back in December. However, it felt as though we had to work twice as hard to deliver the same sales as last year. Plus, discounting on core Christmas decorations, lights and cards seemed to be the norm across the high street for the whole month and was almost expected from customers. Overall, for the Christmas period, we were 1% up on last year. However, Christmas was saved by our website, which delivered the biggest month we’ve ever had, a whopping 191% increase on 2023.”
Greg added that Jellycat continued to be the biggest sales driver, alongside pet gifts such as the new dog bones from History & Heraldry. “We sold 500 in December alone which really helped to keep the tills ringing,” he highlighted.
The full article will be published in the February issue of Progressive Gifts & Home.
To read Progressive Gifts & Home January 2024, click here.
Top: Christmas 2023 delivered a festive cracker for many gift retailers.
