Discover British Independent Shops Online
I have been having a think about why it is so important to shop independent. Why spend our hard-earned money with an independently owned, UK shop, rather than a big corporate?
I absolutely love shopping at independent shops and so many other people do too.
There are lots of reasons, I have 10 of the most important ones here.
10 Reasons to Shop Independent
Selfishly, I am looking at it from me the shopper perspective, after all, that is the reason I began Love Our Shops UK, I wanted to shop at independents more and could not find them. I could find them on my local high street but I wanted to shop at the small businesses online too. Google brought up the corporate’s of this world, but I want the little guys.
I love independent shops and really enjoy shopping with them and being part of their world, their community. Which takes me nicely onto the first reason:
Independent shops create communities, contribute to their communities and are a big part of bringing the community feel into our lives.
They contribute so much to our lives. They aren’t just a place to shop, they are their own little world and as a shopper, I love that when I buy something from them, follow them online or call into their shop, I feel part of their life, part of their community.
The best shops (online or on the high street) are the ones that concentrate on building their community.
Siop Cwlwm Often Run Events For the Welsh Speakers in Their Community.
Selfishly I want independent shops to thrive because I want choice. Independent shop owners seek out products for us, their customers and create a range based on what we want to buy.
Corporate’s, I feel, seek out what they want to sell to us, what will give them the biggest profit. They even use all their marketing content and website layout to coerce us into buying those products, which is not necessarily the best option for us.
Whilst we are talking about choice, that takes me onto my next reason –
Have you noticed independent shops have an individual range and collection of products? They are good quality, thought through and very much influenced by the passion and knowledge of the business owner.
They take their steer from their customers but in their own individual style.
Take a fabric shop for instance, there are many lovely ones and I am forever browsing them. I now know which shop offers what, whose range really reflects my style and what I can buy from each. I also know the owners (even though they are online) which takes me onto my next reason – shop keepers.
Beyond Measure Have a Carefully Curated Product Range
Independent shops are run by shop keepers in the true sense of the word. They may be solely run by the shop owner or the shop owner and a few employees. They are run by real people who you get to know and who get to know you.
Dealing with real people is truly wonderful and not something you get from a corporate high street chain or an online corporate shop or marketplace.
You can hear some of the interviews with shop keepers on my podcast The Shop Independent Show.
Have you ever rung up a big online store for advice? No, me neither. Or maybe tried their online chat offering? I have and not yet found one that was useful.
However, I do regularly ring up (or message) a small online business to ask for advice. Recently it has been about dog food, grass seed, wiper blades, car battery and which fabric should I choose for trousers (you pretty much know my life now 😊).
Why is there such a stark contrast? Because the shop keeper is passionate about what they sell and have the knowledge to assist.
The passion and knowledge that they have is second to none. All of them go out of their way to share this with you and absolutely love doing that.
Wiggly Wigglers, The Masters in Home Composting
Independent shops go the extra mile in so many ways. They add special touches, they communicate with you in a wonderful, helpful and engaging way, they share their knowledge, they make you feel special, they ensure their parcels are wrapped well, often they will add a note, they chat to you, they make sure their offering is what you want…need I go on.
We all want to talk to humans, have a personable service, a quality service that fulfills our expectations (or exceeding them). If we need help, we want to be able to speak to someone who can assist us and go out of their way to resolve any issues in a friendly and successful way.
Independent shops do all that, full stop.
Small businesses care about everything they do and that goes for their footprint and their impact on the planet. Things like trying their best to source more sustainable products, minimising packaging, using eco packaging or changing processes to minimise environmental impact. The list goes on.
Shop keepers natural personality is to care, which leads us onto my next reason –
ZIPPYUP, Organic Cotton Babygrows
Corporate’s have brands. Small businesses have brands and they also have personality. It is that personality that runs through everything that they do.
Personality runs through the look and feel of their shop (online or bricks and mortar), the products they offer, their interaction with their community, how they deliver their service, the marketing that they do, everything. It is that which makes them very special, very special indeed, and I love them for it.
The Chiswick Gift Company Share Their Fabulous Personality in Their Products and Their Marketing
Finally, we talk about the money side of it. Spend a tenner with an independent shop in the UK (whether online, on the high street or at a market) where does that money go? UK taxes, the pockets of people who run it and therefore UK people, pay for employees (again UK people), to buy things from other small businesses…you get my drift.
Spend money with a small business and the money, on the whole, supports the UK economy.
Spend it with a corporate and who knows what percentage actually stays in the UK economy.
What do you think? Am I right to fly the shop independent flag, shop with small businesses as much as I possibly can and help you find these amazing shops online?
I appreciate these hard working shop keepers. I appreciate them being in my world and would like to see every one of them thrive, more new shops open and contribute to our beautiful future.
Do you agree with me on this? Are there more reasons for ensuring small businesses remain in our lives? Please do share them with me. You can find my contact details here.
Thank you for reading and please do shop independent as much as you possibly can, it is the best way to shop.
Happy shopping!
Barbara
All opinions in this blog post are mine. At the time of writing all shops mentioned are members of my shopping directory.
Though I mention lots of shops here, you must form your own opinion as to whether the shop and their products are for you.
Tags: Independent Shops Online, Shop Independent