The last year has not been kind to village shops. They have faced sharp increases in costs thanks to a government that does not understand small business. Excessive hikes in minimum wages are forcing many to reduce staff, while energy costs are squeezing already-tight margins. Customers are becoming more price sensitive too. One minor positive has been that more shops are acting as agents for delivery companies. However some shops are still thriving – and that includes the Corfe Castle Village Shop.
Image: Rupert Hardy
Two years ago a new team of Carl Seaward and Sarah Macaulay took over from Terry and Carole Bernie, who had run it successfully since 2014.
There had been controversy in the way it had been managed before by the previous owners, the Porters, who called in Mary Portas, TV’s Queen of Shops, to give it a radical makeover In 2010. Her strategy was to sell premium-priced local produce to tourists, but ignoring local residents. This was not successful and the business folded.
The Bernies focused on re-equipping the store and catering first for the needs of local residents, and secondly for those of tourists. Most importantly, though, they provided fantastic service – they would order in anything clients wanted.
One should add though that the store is particuarly well located, both for residents, as it lies in the heart of the village, and for tourists, many of whom travel on the steam-powered Swanage Railway which has a station a few hundred yards away.
Carl, who had previously been a Spar store manager, runs the shop helped by Sharon Mayo who worked with the Bernies previously. Sarah does the accounts primarily. They have not changed the Bernie formula too much. However they now use more Co-op branded product to keep prices down on basic lines, important at a time when clients are increasingly price sensitive. They have more promotions too.
They are also building up client deliveries, which have been popular. They are lucky in having a low incidence of shoplifting.
100 gins
One niche strategy adopted by the Bernies was to offer an extraordinary range of gins – well over a hundred – which goes down well with tourists looking for distinctive local produce. The shop is the major outlet for Cromwell’s Ruin gin, a reference to the ruined castle above the town, which is made by Pothecary’s, a Dorset-based distiller.
Overall Carl attributes their success to stocking a broad range of products, or at least being able to source it quickly, including quality local products that are not available in supermarkets. Having a Post Office encourages footfall in the shop too, but clients highlight the high level of service.
His future plans include improving the exterior – perhaps buying a bench for residents to linger on.
Find them as Corfe Castle Village Shop on Facebook.
