Among the keynote speakers at last week’s bira (British Independent Retailers Association) conference were Samantha Yair and Emma Woodward, co-owners of the award-winning lifestyle stores Aspire, based in Warwick, Stratford upon Avon, Earlsdon, Oxford and Solihull.
“The secret of our success is that we make sure that our stores stand out on the high street,” Samantha Yair, co-owner of Aspire told the packed audience at the conference, which took place at the Jurys Inn in Hinckley. “Our shops are one third gifts, one third fashion accessories and one third women’s clothes, and we work very hard to create a unique product mix that works when items are merchandised together. We also strive for excellent customer service,” Samantha continued, “and ensure we engage with our customers through social media and marketing activities. We also look for eye-catching merchandise. Visual merchandising is key to our look in store, and we use a variety of different props to create impact. We keep it fresh by re-merchandising our tables and windows every two weeks.”
Added co-owner Emma Woodward: “A further way in which we engage with our customers is by investing in in-store theatre, which includes many out-of-hours events, such as a catwalk fashion show featuring the clothes we sell, co-ordinated with accessories such as shoes and jewellery. We ask our staff to be our models, and sell an average of 50-60 tickets.”
Explains Emma: “People want to come along because it’s a fun night out. They stay for a long time and spend with us, going away with a great buzz about the brand. In fact, events such as these have been so successful we are going to start holding them in the daytime too. It gives us a good reason to talk to our customers and to encourage passersby to pop in. It’s all about building real relationships with customers.”
Top: The secret to the success of Aspire lifestyle stores is standing out on the high street.
