After nearly 20 years in the self employment game, and the last decade owning what I consider to have been the best boutique in the country, finding ourselves here today, was definitely not part of the plan. Covid hit our business like a lightening bolt and the rug was pulled fast out from under us. Only six weeks ago, I thought I’d never recover from the physical pain in my heart. But the outpouring of love and support I received on social media helped me pick myself up and dust myself off. And so, we’re back! Starting again, building from scratch, and dying to get stuck in.
Anyone who has followed us on Instagram knows how passionate I am about all women, regardless of size, feeling amazing in the clothes that they wear. I wish the whole size issue went without saying to be honest, I wish it wasn’t an issue in the world of fashion, but it very much is. Things are changing, but slowly. Anyway, here I want to create a space where all different types of women will be represented and celebrated. I want the size 8 who is 5 foot nothing, and the size 8 who is 5 foot 8 to see clothes and be able to get an idea on how it will look on them, and the same goes for the size 12, 18 and 24 woman. I want this to be a space where women of all sizes can learn to fall in love with themselves through clothes again. I want to take the fear out of shopping. I want to break down the industry norms. I want to challenge the rule book and show that yes, guess what, women with larger busts CAN wear high necks. If they want to. I want a space where people don’t feel under pressure to find the most “flattering” shape, where there’s no reference to making yourself look smaller. I want you all to see, respect, and celebrate women just looking good in the bodies that they have. And dressing those bodies in clothes that they love.
Another thing that people will know about me, is how passionate I’ve always been about keeping bricks and mortar retail alive. I’ve resisted the pressure to go online for many years. But suddenly during lockdown back in April, I found myself with no other choice but to start selling online. I learnt LOTS. It confirmed one thing very strongly for me though, and that was that the product we stocked in Vanity Fair, was never going to be sold successfully online. People needed to visit the boutique, get the fitting room experience etc. However, what i did learn was that there very definitely was a business in online. A very different business though, but one that opened us up to a whole new customer base. I got messages from women thanking us for their purchases, expressing how good the clothes made them feel, how they would never have travelled to the shop, or how they wouldn’t have had the confidence to walk through the doors of a boutique. Maybe the online space wasn’t the devil after all! Maybe I could use this online space to continue spreading the magic! Maybe?
So, here we are, wish us luck, stay along for the ride, we’ll learn as we go, and we hope to enjoy this journey with you. I think all of us since Covid are in some way starting over, readjusting to new norms, finding new ways, reassessing life.
Here’s to starting over!
Here’s to new beginnings!
New Beginnings