Shop Talk Name: Heidi Early, co-founder Shop: Earlybird Designs Address: Stoke Newington Church Street, London Tell us a little about your shop. It’s a small greeting cards shop, specialising in its own designs and other carefully curated ranges. We’re in Stoke Newington, which despite being in North London has always had a ‘village vibe’. There’s a strong local and vocal community. We have quite a young, creative demographic, lots of young families and then a more middle-aged, well educated, eco-savvy customer too. How did you get into the greetings card industry or retail? My husband (then boyfriend) Dominic started designing greetings cards and selling them on a stall at Old Spitalfields Market straight after his illustration degree at Central St Martins. I would help out at weekends, then he got busier and moved into a lock-up shop. I went freelance and then we got offered our first proper bricks-and-mortar shop in Stoke Newington. I stayed freelancing for years until we started taking enough money to support us both. What are the best and worst things about working in retail? I absolutely love the customer interaction and in particular the stories people tell you about the cards they’re buying and why; you get a glimpse into their world that you wouldn’t otherwise get. It’s also brilliant to see which of our cards sell well before we take our designs to the trade shows. The worst thing is probably the shoplifters and scammers. It’s never a nice feeling when you have to deal with an incident.
“We’re firm believers in the high street being the heart of the community so that means you have to invest your heart and energy into it’’
What cards are selling well in your store at the moment? Well Earlybird Designs of course! (We have just launched our biggest range yet and they are flying out.) We’ve just got new stock in from Stripey Cats, which is proving popular, and our customers are loving the updated funny designs in the Jeffrey and Janice range from Bold & Bright. What card range or category do you always ensure you keep in stock because of its popularity? All of the Earlybird ranges. The Ruby Taylor range from Lagom Design is immense, as are the Shine and Piñata ranges from Redback Cards. And I mustn’t forget Dean Morris - we have been selling his designs for years! What’s in your window at the moment? It’s sale time so the window is full of our £5 bargain bags. We sell five cards and five sheets of giftwrap for £5. It’s a great way of selling through our discontinued lines. And we’ve made our RETAS awards permanent fixtures in the window too!
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What’s by your till at the moment? Super tiny finger hands from Incognito. Customers pick them up, look quizzically and ask ‘why’? And then you get to show them all the fun you can have with them - very silly but a great conversation starter. Plus we have other small pick-up lines such as erasable pens from Legami, and Moomin and Snoopy badges from Hype. And (lethally for anyone working) we always have ethicallyproduced chocolate bars from Coco Chocolatier (they taste and smell amazing!) . Congratulations on winning the RETAS award. What do you think makes your shop stand out? Thank you. I think it’s our involvement with our community. Since we first began we have always supported local schools and local charities and that has grown into working with other local businesses to come up with event ideas and initiatives - and most recently setting up the local business association. We’re firm believers in the high street being the heart of the community so that means you have to invest your heart and energy into it. Our customers see that, which in turn creates loyalty. What’s the most surprising thing a customer has said or done or asked for? One guy asked me to write a ‘sorry’ card to his girlfriend. He didn’t like his handwriting so he dictated while I wrote - a little bit awkward and I always wondered if his girlfriend would speculate who wrote the card and then would realise the subject of their argument had been dictated in the card shop! If you could send anyone a card from the past or present, who would it be and why? Are there any cards that say congratulations on your resignation? I want to send one to Boris Johnson! How do trade magazines such as Greetings Today help you? Trade magazines are excellent for showcasing all that is brilliant about our industry. I love reading about fellow retailers and publishers. It’s great to hear about what sells well for other retailers and to get inspired by display ideas. It’s also reassuring to hear what other retailers experience and know that we all go through much the same! And I love reading about trends and big-picture stuff.
