And the winner is.......
We have been members of Bira (British Independent Retailers Association) for around two years. They are a industry group that cover a whole host of things including fighting the corner of independent retailers, whether it's lobbying government on business rates, surveying and studying the current state of retail in the country to championing retail across the UK.
Annually they hold a conference for the retail industry with a number of key speakers, ending with a glitzy awards ceremony, celebrating all that's best amongst the UK's independent retailers.
We heard we had been shortlisted for one of the awards a few weeks before the big event. We were really pleased that were in the final and honoured to be invited to the big awards ceremony in Bristol competing against the rest of independent retail in the UK.
After a great meal and chatting to some retail industry movers and shakers and a lighthearted after dinner speech from former BBC correspondent Kate Adie, the awards were on.
Our category was third in the running order and it seemed a long wait to get to it.
The sweaty palms then kicked-in as they announced our category and the shortlisted companies. And the winner is.............Roobarb!
We were speechless, we won, wow! We won the Independent Retail Team of the Year 2017. We didn't see that one coming for this fairly new retail company like ourselves.
Ever since we began trading we have always believed in the ethos the importance of the team. Whilst we don't have a lot staff, we believe everyone in our team should have a say in what we do and how we can make the brand of Roobarb and www.LoveRoobarb.co.uk better and more appealing to our customers and potential customers.
We work really hard with our team, teaching them customer service skills and educating them with product knowledge so they are able to pass it on to our customers. Not only is it good for our brand and customers to know the back-story of the product we sell, but it is also good for our team to be knowledgable and it makes them able to converse with our customers with ease.
We believe that being successful in the high street is not just about opening our doors and offering a stunning product range, it's about having a point of difference for the shopper, something they don't and won't get from the internet.
