Gift Focus inc Attire Accessories - Page number 83 - July/August 2021

83 RETAILER INTERVIEW Tell us a bit about your store and how you came to open the business. The Indigo Tree has two branches – one in Streatham and one in Crystal Palace. We are now in our ninth year and were voted the Best Gift Shop within the M25 in 2020. We opened our Streatham branch in 2013 as there were no lovely shops in Streatham and we really needed a gift shop that also sold great cards. Our Crystal Palace branch was opened in November 2019. Is the location important to the success of your store? Location is absolutely vital – Crystal Palace is located on a triangle in a great location, but Streatham High Road is the longest high road in Europe with no central point, so we are right in the heart of Streatham – where most of the small supermarkets, coffee shops are and has the highest footfall. What challenges were overcome when the company was starting out? There are always challenges when running your own business. Starting with the marketing – drawing customers to your business is probably the hardest. Once people become customers they are loyal and return to shop in store as well as shopping online. What is your customer base? Our customer base is mainly local customers – we have branched out with launching our website and are now getting customers buying from all over the UK. What’s your USP? Our USP is that we are a small independent family-run business – my husband and I, my sister and two of my three adult children all work for the company – we also have a shop dog called Doris. Our Instagram is @theindigotreeldn What are your current bestselling lines? Candles, reed diffusers, essential oils for oil burners, soaps, handcreams, lighting, Jellycat gifts and women’s clothing. Are you active on social media, and how do you use it for your business? We are very active on social media and use it to promote the shops, new products, occasions, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, easter, Christmas etc etc. What brands do you stock and why? Jellycat is our most popular children’s I I I ` In bloom Harriett de Wolff, director of award-winning London retailer The Indigo Tree, talks successful products, the necessity for strong customer service, and her vision for future expansion