Talking Shop

We’ve missed you!

Rachael Simpson-Jones spoke to indies getting ready for the planned April reopening, to hear what lessons they have learned from the last year and what has been selling online over lockdown.

Lisa Dyson - Games Crusade, Harrogate

Throughout the third lockdown we’ve simply continued to do what we’ve been doing throughout this whole period - being as helpful as possible. When people order with us online, we’ll try and deliver it free in the local area, and we’ve carried on mailing toys and games out too. Customers have also taken to emailing us for product advice and recommendations based on a child’s age and interests. This has temporarily replaced our usual customer service while in-store; we’ve been busy replying with information that customers have hopefully found useful.

To generate much-needed income now, I started offering gift vouchers which give buyers or receivers an extra 10% to spend once we reopen. We’ve been promoting these on Facebook and the reaction from customers has been great. One lady bought nine to give out as prizes to her school pupils, while another bought multiple vouchers for upcoming birthdays and other special events. For Mother’s Day, we even had a husband buy his wife a voucher. She’s a regular board game customer of ours and he knows she’ll enjoy spending it – and that she’s getting a little bit more for her money. It’s been a really worthwhile idea.

The popularity of puzzles shows no signs of waning, so we’re ensuring we’re well stocked up ready for the day we reopen. Some puzzlers will inevitably buy new products online, but there are still plenty that like to come into the store and browse our shelves, a bit like you would in a book shop. We try to offer an eclectic mix of puzzles in terms of artwork and complexity. Whilst we have a lot of traditional scenes from the likes of Gibson and Falcon, we also offer some of the more unusual Eurographics puzzles, though these have been harder to get hold of recently because of Brexit and the issues surrounding shipping. There are a lot more younger people now enjoying puzzling, whereas before the category was very dominated by people around retirement age. As the demographic has shifted, our offering has changed to reflect it.

Because we haven’t been able to run in-store board game demos, I’ve been playing two or three a week at home, usually accompanied by a glass of prosecco, and posting an overview and pictures on social media. That has been very well received; people can see that we do actually play these games and know what we’re on about, and if we explain them in a way that helps customers understand whether or not they’d be a good choice for them, we see sales increase in line with customer confidence. Asmodee remains our major supplier of board games, but the trick is to then find points of difference. I look for individual designers and quirky games you won’t find in bigger stores. I listen to a lot of podcasts and undertake a fair bit of research on board games, which often gives me a heads-up about where to sniff out more niche, unique titles. The Smart Games range is a best-seller for us in-store, as its games are very tactile. Customers like picking them up and playing with them, so I’m sure those will really benefit from the April reopening.

I’ve also been looking more at pocket money toys, as this an area kids will have really missed. They will have received toys for birthdays and Christmas, but for a long time they’ve not had the opportunity to visit a store and spend their own money. In the months ahead, once we reopen, smaller items and pocket money toys should do quite well. Much like puzzles, I’m not going for mainstream collectibles you can find anywhere. Ty has been very good to me as a supplier, supporting my window displays, and the whole range is always popular – Mini Boos, Beanie Boos, Squisha-Boos, Teenie Tys. During lockdown, I invested in a new pocket money toys FSDU, and only the other day were we outside flying some pocket-money pocketsized kites for Facebook and TikTok videos.

I think a lot of customers will be very keen to return to in-person shopping, but it will also be interesting to see whether some customers have enjoyed the ease of online shopping to the extent that they want to stick with it. There will be those that want the social interaction and conversation with other people, but also those that find online shopping convenient for their own situation. A lot depends on how things develop once lockdown is lifted, too. In Harrogate, the conference centre has been used as a Nightingale Hospital; once it reverts back to its normal use, we should see more events taking place that will increase footfall. For towns like ours, which rely on quite high numbers of visitors, a lot will hinge on how much travel is allowed. On that note, I am keen to return to toy trade shows this year. It’s so much easier to choose new lines when you’re seeing them in person, as opposed to looking through a catalogue or looking at them on Zoom.

Online has been a huge learning curve for us during the pandemic. Although we did have an online presence before, it wasn’t one of my priorities. I’ve also learned to think outside the box much more. Just because one avenue is closed it doesn’t mean you can’t find other ways around them. I’ve been forced to take the initiative, and I’m glad we did.

Bill Bulstrode - Owner, Framlingham Toy Shop

Trading locally as Bulstrodes for over 35 years, we are a well-established independent retailer in the heart of Framlingham, a market town famous for its castle (and more recently Ed Sheeran) in the Suffolk countryside.

The last year has been extremely challenging. During the first lockdown we took the time to establish our first online toy shop. This proved invaluable in Q1 2021 and going forward is something we hope to build on. Our presence on social media - Facebook, Instagram and Twitter - has been a learning curve, but it’s given the business great free exposure, both locally and nationally.

I guessed that we’d be open again by May, and I wasn’t far off. We’re planning on running some promotions when we open our doors; we’re a major Lego stockist and we’re sitting on a lot of product, with orders still arriving regularly, so this seems an ideal way to tempt customers into the shop and move through some of the older stock. People in the local area seem keen to get out, but perhaps not so keen to ‘get in’, in terms of visiting bricks & mortar stores. Our shop is a very safe place to be though; masks are required of course, we have a foot-operated sanitiser pump at the door and numbers are limited for the safety of both staff and customers. Our premises are over 2,000 square feet and easy for wheelchairs and prams, which makes ours a very friendly shop to visit if you need that little bit of extra space. I’m sure that, once they get used to the idea, customers will be back to check out the latest toys and simply enjoy the experience of visiting a toy store once again.

We’ve been trying to stock up ready for reopening with a number of companies but it’s fair to say that things are a bit tricky at the moment. I reckon that’s down to a combination of Brexit and the issues with shipping that Toy World has been reporting on. Suppliers are working hard to push orders for later in the year, but many delivery dates are up in the air. We’ll continue placing orders and look forward to receiving new shipments as and when they arrive.

Framlingham Toy Shop is a big part of our diverse business and we’ve been a Toymaster member for several years. This has opened new accounts as well as helping us make great friendships within the trade. We previously worked closely with Woodbridge Toy Shop, splitting orders to make carriage and on larger quantities that were too much for us as a single shop. With the sad closing of the Woodbridge store, we’ve built on this ethos with Nigel at Halesworth Toy Shop and Dan at The Toy Box at Beccles, which are our nearest Toymaster members. This is already proving to be of great mutual benefit. We are also stock- and info-sharing with Dee and Sue at Salter Street Toys in Stafford and Brendan at Will’s Toyshop in Aberdeen. Brendan sent me some Pokémon this week, which just goes to prove that, geographically speaking, you don’t need to be on the doorstep to keep up established partnerships and friendships.

The man I must thank for instilling this mindset, really, is Ian Edmunds, when he was Toymaster’s managing director. Ian used to reiterate constantly that members should be helping each other rather than seeing each other as competitors, a message that the group promotes to this day. As we slowly emerge from the pandemic, this has to be the way going forward. A collaborative approach not only ensures that we have what we need, but that our customers have what they want, and keeps everyone happy. I’ve just done my Lego orders for the second half, and a lot of the bigger, higher price point sets are in MOQs of threes and fours, but Dee at Salter Street is willing to split orders so we have two each. This is the perfect solution, especially when carriage paid is going through the roof.

I think Toymaster is just brilliant. We love the members’ forum, we love the events; the FOB show and the May show in Harrogate. Yogi calls me regularly to see how things are here, which makes me feel very supported. It’s a great network for independents. We’ll be there for the May show in 2022, though we’re obviously sad to not be attending this year. I’m so looking forward to seeing all the members and suppliers under one roof again.

Our main supplier and biggest seller is Lego. The brand performs well across all genres, even some of the less well-known ranges such as Architecture. Over the last lockdown, we made sure that we had plenty of stock of jigsaw puzzles and craft/science kits. Gibsons has supported us well throughout lockdown, and Airfix kits have been really popular with consumers either taking up a new hobby or rediscovering an old one. Schleich has also been reliable throughout, and in its big anniversary year, Pokémon is flying off the shelves - when you can get it. Stock is short, but we’re certainly not alone in that and it creates demand; on

occasion, new Pokémon stock has sold in 24 hours. Squishimals from Jazwares have been extremely popular alongside Ty Squish-a-Boos, and Hot Wheels die cast sells well as it’s so collectible. We do need a craze, something that will take off like fidget spinners did, but like all crazes, you have to be quick to get in and quick to get out. With spring just around the corner, we have forward orders for all things outdoors, too – Mookie supports us well in this area.

What we have really missed over lockdown is face to face interaction with customers and, in that respect, having the right staff is vital. I’d like to give some well-deserved recognition to Karen Haynes, who has been with us over 25 years and with me since almost the very beginning. Karen’s my right hand – she could run this business without any input from me and I cannot emphasis enough how utterly brilliant she is. The customers love her, she loves them, she knows all the reps and all our colleagues, and in a small family business that’s invaluable.

I’ve been having a good tidy round the shop the past few days, and it’s looking lovely, though fresh stock will make it look even lovelier. We’re optimistic about the rest of 2021. Consumers want to get out and get shopping, so it’s up to us as retailers to make our shops safe and inviting places to be. We’re not out of the woods yet, but we’re definitely going in the right direction.

Andrew Olley - City Cycle Centre, Ely, Cambridgeshire

This lockdown hasn’t been too bad for us, really. I understand that a lot of bricks & mortar retailers have been shut, but as we’re a department store and sell some essential items the blow has been cushioned a bit, though the toy department has been operating behind closed doors. Click & Collect and free local delivery services have been available, and these have been ticking along well. On social media, regular posts and updates help us keep in touch with our customers - since March 2020, our followers on Instagram and Facebook have increased threefold and our reach has become much wider. Every time we meet customers face-to-face in the street, they praise our social media aspect. It’s been a godsend for keeping lines of communication open; I would go so far as to say it’s vital to what we’re doing, and far more important than it seemed prior to the pandemic.

We’re working on the basis that post-lockdown measures this time around will be very similar to those we implemented following the March and November lockdowns. In the shop, we put in place a very successful distancing system to keep customers and staff alike safe, and we’ll be using the same system again come the April reopening. As we’ve been operating from within the store throughout lockdown it hasn’t been neglected, and in terms of appearance is more than ready to welcome back shoppers.

Our stock profile is adapting from the key items we’ve been selling in high numbers over the past few months – Lego and puzzles, for example – to lines better suited for ranging in-store. Although we’ve been selling online for months, customers will soon be back browsing our shelves, so we’re shifting back towards brands and products that we know perform best when the full range can be displayed, not just key lines. The best-selling toys online can be quite different to those in a physical store; there are always lines that are more pick-up and add-on, and we need a variety of stock to make our department work. This shift is well underway, and orders are arriving daily.

Sales of pocket money and collectible toys should definitely see an uplift when we reopen. Our Schleich offering is being significantly stepped up, and we expect very strong sales of Minecraft and Roblox, Lego MiniFigures and MarioBags, and Character Options brands like Mash’ems and Treasure X. Eugy from Brainstorm has been selling very well via online because visually it is incredibly strong, but the average blind bag collectible is quite difficult to show off effectively. In-store, pocket money lines are a whole different ballgame. Being able to see a whole display of product also immediately broadens appeal and increases purchasing opportunities with customers. Sylvanian Families, for example, lends itself incredibly well to in-store ranging for those that like to stand back and take a moment to appreciate what they are seeing.

I think games and puzzles will be strong again this year, but I doubt sales will reach the lofty heights they did during the first lockdown. Our puzzle sales have increased fivefold over the past year, and I think that with so many consumers now having that puzzling-bug, we’ll see the popularity of these products continue. Although I expect sales for this category will be down this year, compared to a ‘normal’ year, they will most definitely be up.

I get the feeling that people are desperate to get back to shopping in physical stores, particularly children. My customers tell me there are a lot of kids out there with Christmas money saved, looking forward to spending it when the toy shops reopen. They want to be there, look around, see the toys for themselves and make decisions about what to spend their money on in person, not through a screen. There’s a big desire to shop local combined with pent up demand and money to be spent. That’s not to say there isn’t an element of reticence with some shoppers who may be hesitant to come back, but toy shops have always been, and will always be, exciting places to visit. When they reopen, as long as we let people know they are safe environments, the customers will return.

We’ve all experienced a period more difficult than any of us could have ever imagined prior to the arrival of Covid, and the supply chain remains challenging post-Brexit, but we have to be optimistic. We’ve got through it thus far, and things aren’t looking anywhere near as gloomy as they were this time last time. Compare where we are now to where we were almost a year ago today – it’s an entirely different situation, and while there may still be setbacks, we’re looking at some much better times ahead. My customers are feeling positive, so why shouldn’t I?