New Retailer Up and running
A new outdoor store has opened in Shropshire, and Jon Bruford went along to find out a bit more about this new venture
A
fter the recent recession and accompanying doom and gloom, any new business starting up should probably be celebrated. Marches Outdoor has opened in my home town of Ludlow, in Shropshire. Surrounded as we are by countryside and beautiful walks in the hills, it’s surprising no-one has tried to do this before, but Sam Rosenberg and her partner have taken the plunge and the results have exceeded their expectations. Their 480 sq ft shop is in a plum location on the high street, and opened in July.
SGB: Why do this now? Sam Rosenberg: There was a real gap in the market in Ludlow for an outdoor shop. We couldn’t buy anything locally, we’d have to buy it online or go to a different town. And we did it now because this location became available, and it was too good to turn down. There was another premises available, but it didn’t have the foot traffic passing the front door that this one has.
The downstairs cellar was in a terrible state of repair, so it’s having a lot of work done on it to take care of damp. we asked the landlord if we could use both the floors so they’re knocking the walls out to make it one large area downstairs. It will ultimately be a boot and bag room, items that take up a lot of room.
SGB: Which brands do you stock and how did you select them? Bearing in mind that it’s a passion for both of you, did that influence your choices? SR: With some brands yes, with some no. We did lots of market research, going in to lots of outdoor shops in Brecon, Ross-on-Wye, and even further afield.
We’ve got quite a broad audience in Ludlow, there are so many different markets we can address. There’s ramblers, dog walkers, the more adventurous who go on longer hikes, fell runners, cyclists, mountain bikers… It’s a broad mix. For the younger, more adventurous customers we have Paramo coming on board, with very technical gear. Same for Montane, highly technical and it will appeal to fell runners and cyclists.
We have The North Face coming in because they’re the brand. The tourists we see here every weekend are all in The North Face, so we had to
14 SGB OUTDOOR SEPTEMBER 2010 have them in.
We’ve also got Berghaus, which is a good broad, solid brand, lots of people wear it. The stock we’ve brought in includes some high-end mountain jackets right down to the dog walker crowd, with waterproof jackets that look a bit more lifestyle.
We have Craghoppers as our entry- level brand. You can’t beat their Kiwi trousers. They’re another good solid brand.
SGB: Has anything surprised you after your first month of trading? SR: The response has been delightful. People come in and say ‘at last, and outdoor shop in Ludlow!’
We have a Buff display, and we’re getting dog Buff in soon too; we’re also the only place in town where you can buy Oakley sunglasses. We’re going to try and be as broad as possible. The beauty of these brands is that they have evolved so much in the last few years and their pieces cover so many different purposes now.
The thing that’s surprised me the most are the Lowe Alpine female backpacks. They’re the only brand that does female- specific packs; they have narrower straps, they sit better on the hips. I’ve sold a dozen of those in four weeks, which is pretty amazing. And it’s been the bright colours, the pinks and blues, that have sold. The two pink ones I had in initially sold right away, then I had to order more. Ladies just love the bright colours.
The other thing that’s gone really well is the Craghoppers Travelite jacket. We’ve had it on a sale price at £40. I’ve sold about 30 of those and we’ve had to keep re-ordering. We could hardly keep up with demand.
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