Sally Matson of Red Card gift shop in Petworth, West Sussex

Red Card turns 10

Shop manager Karen West and owner Sally Matson

Sally Matson, owner of the multi-award-winning Red Card shop in the heart of the West Sussex town of Petworth, is celebrating a decade of trading

What’s your background?

I studied Honours English at Monash University in Melbourne, as I always wanted to be an English teacher. However, having taken a part-time job in a restaurant, my career started in hospitality, working for Hyatt International in Australia.

I then travelled to England to work for Conran Restaurants (now D&D London) for a number of years, before getting married, moving to West Sussex, and taking a break to start a family.

Why did you move into retailing?

After this break, I started working in Petworth Bookshop, and discovered there was a need for a greeting cards shop in the town. In partnership with Steve Howe, the owner of Petworth Bookshop, Red Card was born in July 2011.

Top 5 Best Sellers

1. Jellycat plush 2. MSH handbags 3. Lua velvet purses and pouches 4. Djeco arts & crafts gifts 5. Roka bags

Tell us about your business.

The original premises was at 5 High Street, in a space of around 250sq ft. After we had been there for a year, the owner of the building decided to sell it, and as we didn’t have security of tenure (learning all the time!) we had to vacate the shop.

What we had created was very successful, so we packed everything up, put it in storage and began looking for another premises - this time larger.

As luck would have it, 6 High Street became available, and it was twice the size. We reopened one year later, so this year we officially celebrate 10 years of trading.

As our lockdown project, we relocated to premises twice the size (around 1,000sq ft) in a building next to the main car park in Petworth. So the footfall has increased along with the size of the shop. This move has been extraordinarily successful, and we have greatly expanded our offering.

How would you describe your range?

Having originally started as a greeting cards shop (we have won a RETAS Greeting Card Retail Award three times: Best New Greeting Card Retailer in the South when we opened, and then Best Greeting Card Retailer in the Home Counties and South East in 2019 and 2021), the new shop has enabled us to expand our gift offering and our children’s offering.

Our range of gifts is colourful and practical. There are very few items in the shop which don’t serve a purpose. We don’t really do ornaments and decorative items, except at Easter and Christmas.

What are your key categories?

Fashion, jewellery, homeware, stationery, body & beauty, partyware, children’s toys, and men’s gifts.

Who are your key suppliers?

We have a number of key suppliers: Powder UK, MSH, Hot Tomato, Talking Tables, Gisela Graham, Jane Hogben Pottery, Heathcote & Ivory, Beefayre, Caspari, Kikkerland, Legami, Museums & Galleries, Chilly’s, Portico, Gentlemen’s Hardware, House of Marbles, Lamy, Le Toy Van, Jellycat, Djeco, Meri Meri, Rex London, Yoshi, East of India - and many more smaller suppliers.

Where do you source products?

Through trade shows (Top Drawer, Spring Fair, Autumn Fair, Home & Gift and Progressive Greetings Live), rep and agent visits, and by visiting other shops.

What’s your selection criteria?

It depends to a certain extent on what we are buying, and it has changed and adapted to consumer demand over time.

We are very aware of the interest in environmentally-conscious companies and products, and also the move away from products manufactured in China. While products within these guidelines are very attractive to our customer base, they do come at a premium cost - and with the current economic climate, we try to maintain a balance between these issues.

What lines have you started stocking recently?

Lanka Kade: beautiful, small handmade wooden

toys which are tactile, bright and at a good price point, so they are popular as a small pick-up item. We have also introduced Ziggle, which is a lovely range of baby items (such as leggings, bibs, hats, and muslins). These are proving very popular as they are such lovely baby gifts. Finally, we discovered Elite gift boxes at Spring Fair this year and bought the most beautiful tins from them - their licensed ranges from Emma Bridgewater and Sara Miller are flying out.

How is trading for you?

Since reopening in our new premises after the final lockdown in April 2021, trade has been fantastic. Spring seasons were huge, and the tourist season continued this positive trading period. All categories are selling well, so the buying is ticking over nicely.

I’m conscious of the cost-of-living crisis, and although it hasn’t affected my buying, I am being more conservative. As with most retailers, I want to steer the shop steadily through this current period, so have no plans for big changes at this stage.

How do you maintain the interest of customers and attract new ones?

The shop’s new location has definitely attracted new customers. We have also gained new customers through our Instagram posts (our Jubilee products were posted all over the UK), even though we don’t have a website.

We have a very loyal local customer base and with the increase in petrol prices and the uncertain economy, many people are choosing to shop local, which is great.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of your job?

Running a successful small business in challenging times. And being part of the local community is very important to me. I’m Chair of the Petworth Business Association and also involved in a number of other committees and organisations that help support the town and run events.

And the most challenging?

Finding enough time to achieve all the things I

What’s in a name?

Red Card owner Sally Matson says: “The story of the name of my business still sends shivers up my spine. From the very start, I wanted to call the shop Red Card. I had no reason for this, but that was the name I wanted.

“Friends and family commented on how strange they thought this - that people would think it was a football shop, or that it had negative implications. But after considering hundreds of other ideas, I stuck with Red Card.

“On the day we opened, a local historian named Peter Jerome came in and said he had a photo to show me. In his hand was a picture taken outside my shop during the street celebrations for Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953. At that time the premises was a small electrical shop called The Chinese Lantern, and it was owned by… Mr R. E. Card. This name was painted above the shop - with exactly the same lettering that I had chosen for the shop. So that’s how we started. And even though it’s a strange name, the provenance is fascinating!”

want to - but that is easier when I can manage to find a good work/life balance. My days off are the times when I can plan and make decisions about the business, as I’m able to stand back and find more perspective.

Starting a small business from scratch has been a huge learning curve, and I’m very proud of what I’ve created. I’m grateful for the support and encouragement I’ve received from the industry and my colleagues, and I look forward to continuing to grow and develop Red Card over the next few years.

Party time

Red Card hosted a party in September to mark its milestone birthday. Regular customers and a selection of guests from the industry were among those invited to raise a glass at the evening event, which was held in-store. L-R: agent Maria McKenna, shop manager Karen West, owner Sally Matson, and agent Nikki Walsh