Totally Local Lancaster - Expressions of Lancaster

from The Lancashire & North West Magazine | August 2021

by The Lancashire & North West Magazine

Photo + Flourish

By Paul Cusimano, Joseph Clothing, Lancaster

It was early March when Linda told me that they had decided to open a second retail store in Lancaster. This was on the back of a torrid twelve months for retailers. “Fortune Favours The Brave”.

Above: ‘Expressions of Lancaster’ Gifts For Every Occasion

‘Expressions of Lancaster’, a beautiful store. Another of Lancaster’s plethora of high quality independent businesses that make Lancaster a fantastic shopping experience. Opened in 1999 in Marketgate Shopping Centre, it has a real presence. You cannot walk past the double fronted business without looking in their beautifully merchandised windows. Always eye catching.

This gift, jewellery and fashion accessory business, also houses Lancaster’s longest established piercing studio on the first floor. Over the twenty years, the business has grown and more space was required to fully represent the fantastic brands stocked. This was something I understood, as in my business I’m a believer in ‘brand representation’. If you believe in a brand, then you offer your customers a good selection from their range. 138 LANCASHIRE & NORTH WEST MAGAZINE

Above: ‘Expressions of Lancaster’

This is the beauty of owning your own business. You make the choices of which brands to stock. There is often criteria to meet to become stockists of certain brands. To reach agreement with a supplier to have ‘Shop in Shop’ you have to be at the top of your game. Opening a second store in Lancaster gave Linda, Steph and Jeff, the three partners, the space needed. With less than two months to ready the new premises before the end of Lockdown 3.0, it was all hands to the pumps. The physical works and the planning were all being juggled. It had to be right, there was no room for error. The twelfth of April was fast approaching. The day had arrived, and I don’t know how, but ‘Expressions & Co’, sister shop to ‘Expressions of Lancaster’, was ready and open. I called in. Linda and Steph were calmness personified. Jeff was industrious. What a transformation. The shop was beautiful. I was blown away and for once rather speechless.

I asked how they had split the ranges between the two shops, which conveniently, are literally a minutes’ walk from each other. Linda explained “In ‘Expressions of Lancaster’ [in Marketgate] we’ve now expanded our range of home and giftware. We’ve now added an adorable new range of baby clothes from ‘Dandelion’ as well as increased the range of ‘Steiff’ teddies, which will include the Collector’s Editions.”

Steph told me that there were also new ranges of glasses, frames, home accessories and wellness gifts, adding “With the Piercing Studio still being there, we’ve now the space to increase both our Sterling silver jewellery and ear piercing/body jewellery ranges.” The bookings for their famous piercing studio had gone crazy, so anyone wanting any piercings are advised to ring (01524 380404) to book an appointment. I asked what ‘Expressions & Co’ was and about the timing, given the fact that we were still in a Pandemic. Linda explained, “Following last years two Lockdowns, we were completely overwhelmed by the support we had received from our customers. We had been struggling for space really. When we first opened, the shop was plenty big enough, but as the business has evolved and grown, space became an issue. In order to allow the growth, some hard thinking had to be done.” Steph added “Lancaster is a City that is full of quality independent businesses. Moving into a bigger store was considered but we feared losing that feel and experience that comes uniquely from the independent businesses. A bigger premises with ‘shop in shop’ collections could have made it more of a ‘department store’ feel for our customers, and we didn’t want to lose our identity.” “It was when we spotted these premises in Sir Simon’s Arcade, which is literally a minutes’ walk away from our store, that everything seemed to make sense, now was the right time to expand. The two stores are connect by Everard’s Way, a short walkway. A second premises in Lancaster, a third overall. Once we secured the new premises, we sought to maximise the time we were afforded by being closed due to the third Lockdown.”

This brave move, in the current climate, has allowed the Expressions business to really showcase these two great brands in the way they deserve to be. Like the business, these brands maintain their personal feel, a very exclusive feel.