The Wardrobe Shop is moving from Welford to Shipston as it expands
THE BOOM in ‘green’ fashion has powered a pre-loved fashion boutique into a larger size.
The Wardrobe Shop is moving out of its Welford base next month, as there’s no longer enough space and it will re-open in Shipston on September 10th.
The stock of nearly-new women’s fashion and accessories, which includes high-end labels like Jimmy Choo, Christian Louboutin, Miu Miu, Marc Jacobs, Self-Portrait, Burberry and Jaeger, is popular with customers from a wide catchment area including Birmingham and the Cotswolds.
The dresses, skirts, trousers, tops, jackets, coats, shoes, bags and hats, which started life with a hefty price tag, may have been worn only once or twice.
Owner Christine Timms finds them a new home with customers who want to shop sustainably and save money.
When the business re-opens in Shipston’s Sheep Street, it will also include pre-loved menswear with labels such as Boss and Paul Smith, have two changing rooms instead of one and extended opening hours.
Christine, 62, said: “We’ve outgrown the old place so when the opportunity came along, as the owner of Niche boutique was retiring, I jumped at it.”
This isn't Christine's first time with vintage fashion, she's been at the sharp end of the industry for more than 40 years.
In the 1980s she launched a pre-loved fashion shop bank-rolled by Margaret Thatcher’s Enterprise Allowance Scheme, which paid £40 a week to unemployed people who started their own business.
“I didn’t know about sustainability when I started, that was unheard of,” she explained.
“There were a couple of places in London, but I was among the first.”
She built the business and eventually owned four shops in Birmingham.
When she came to Stratford, it was to retire but she missed the fashion world and her customers so much, she opened The Wardrobe Shop eight years ago.
The business works on a 50-50 split, so a customer receives a bank transfer or cash for half of the re-sale price.
When it comes to finding stock, Christine prefers designer labels but accepts higher-end High Street brands such as Whistles, Jigsaw and The White Company and some Zara and Hobbs.
Despite growing competition from online sites such as Vinted and eBay, she says customers love coming into a bricks-and-mortar shop to see, touch and try on clothes.
And her years of experience are invaluable as she has the skill to help pick out clothes to suit someone’s shape, size, age and personality and can suggest a belt, bag, scarf, hat or shoes to complete the look.
“If you’re wearing M&S to a wedding, the chances of other people turning up in the same dress are quite high but you’re very unlikely to see another person in an outfit from us,” she said.
