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When Boris Johnson appeared on television to announce the closing of November, it was the final straw for Joh Rindom.
Before the prime minister had finished speaking, the Bristol store owner had voiced her response on Instagram.
“Small businesses will once again suffer immeasurably,” he told his clients.
“So PLEASE buy small,” he added. “Resist Amazon at all costs and think about how you ‘vote with your money.'”
Joh runs That Thing, an independent fashion, home goods and accessories store. Like many smaller retailers, it has been through the most difficult year it has ever known.
It’s always tough to compete with the big brands online, but this year, store owners like her have had to stay on the sidelines as rival outlets, considered essential, stay open, taking advantage of the Christmas trade.
By the end of November, non-essential stores will be closed for 17 weeks a year. Some say it’s a “use it or lose it” situation – buyers need to support them or they won’t be there next Christmas.
“Small businesses have websites too,” says Joh. “People just need to wake up a little bit and think outside of that box.”
Maybe because people have spent more time at home, maybe because they have focused on what is important to them, this year there seems to be a “trend for independents,” he thinks.
A third of us plan to spend more on independent stores this year than in 2019, according to a survey commissioned by Enterprise Nation, an organization that supports startups. It found that younger shoppers are even more determined, with half of those under 35 planning to buy more from independent stores.
Small-scale vendors have been quick to respond to these promises, offering everything from antique handbags to macrame plant hangers. There are over 42 million posts tagged as #shoplocal on Instagram.
The biggest independents are also showing their agility. Those who weren’t operating online yet were quick to remedy that, and while their budgets make it difficult to compete with the likes of John Lewis and Marks and Spencer, they are finding ways to gain traction: reaching out to the local online community. groups, tapping into nostalgia with “Hovis-ad style” bike deliveries and emphasizing their environmental credentials.
Others are innovating even more: chatting one-on-one with customers on video calls and offering personal purchases through Zoom.
Loki Wine Merchants in Birmingham has held virtual wine tastings, and DJV Boutique in Ipswich launched online fashion shows and a service that helps select, wrap and ship your gifts for you.
DJV owner Mandy Errington says loyal customers are eager to support them, but she doesn’t stop there. “We are attracting new people thanks to personal services,” he says.
But independents know it still won’t be enough to get them noticed in the run-up to Christmas, so some are joining forces.
In Bristol, Joh Rindom has teamed up with 22 other independent outlets to create an online directory. They are putting up signs all over the city advertising “Bristol Independents Online” with a QR code that links to their website.
Christmas markets, which often see the streets of many UK towns and cities crammed with shoppers side by side, have inevitably been canceled. But many of them are being replaced by virtual forums, which offer the opportunity to buy directly from the people who normally run the posts.
More permanently, Bookshop.org has recently launched in the UK. Marketing itself as an ‘ethical’ way to fight the power of Amazon, it is hosting online storefronts for more than 250 of the UK’s independent booksellers, offering them a large chunk of the sales revenue they help generate.
For its part, Amazon points out that it is not an enemy of the small businesses that sometimes paint itself. More than half of the physical products sold on Amazon come from third-party small and medium-sized companies, he says.
In October, it held a small business promotion to boost business and organizes boot camps and e-learning sessions to support small marketers together with Enterprise Nation.
Emma Jones, founder of Enterprise Nation, says Amazon and similar forums can help create “broad exposure to customers.”
“Yes, you have your own e-commerce website and social channels, but it also makes sense to try selling on Amazon, Etsy or Uber Eats for restaurants and caterers, as they offer access to a wide network of customers,” he says.
Lavinia Davolio, founder of the Lavolio confectionery boutique in London, says that before Covid-19 reached about half of their sales were online, most of them through Amazon. But this year those sales have doubled. Amazon has been “a lifesaver,” he says.
So will these strategies be enough to get local retailers to do it?
Oliver Vernon-Harcourt, partner in Deloitte’s retail consulting practice, says strategies like these – building networks, innovating with digital technology, reaching new customers – could make a difference.
“Companies that are proactive about trying different things – trying, learning, failing as quickly as possible – have the best chance of succeeding,” he says. Furthermore, they will be in a stronger position to compete in the years to come.
But in the end, says Andrew Goodacre of the British Association of Independent Retailers, it will all come down to consumers. Will they put their money where their mouths are?
“It will only be enough if people don’t panic and buy everything [for Christmas] now he says.
“There are two things I would advise consumers to do: wait until December, they will have better options and better prices. And if you are shopping online, look for the store you know, not the product you want.”
