Whatever you might think of 2017, there is no doubt that it was a challenging year and the last 12 months certainly kept the retail industry on its toes. PWW spoke to Kate Moore, owner of Jollyjesters, to find out how last year has shaped up for the Derbyshire retailer…
Highlight Of 2017
“An alarming number of long- established party shops closed down in 2017, mainly due to competition from
poundshops, chainstores, and cheap online Chinese imports, so still being here on 31 December was our business highlight of 2017!”
Bringing The Fun Back
“When we started this business in 1990 it was fun, but for a few years recently the fun was starting to get sapped out of it, due to the unrealistic expectations of customers and the competition from cheap imports. At first we tried to compete with that online market, but it made no sense to chop prices and work at a loss – so these days our customer base is people who appreciate the advice, knowledge and service we can offer after 28 years. We noticed over Christmas and New Year how grateful people seemed and I can truly say that this was the first Christmas for quite a while which actually seemed fun again.”
Hopes And Plans For 2018
“We hope that 2018 will see Amazon sellers will stop displaying ridiculously inflated RRPs which trick customers into thinking they’re getting a bargain. It would also be nice if all Chinese imports (not just party items) became subject to a huge supertax to break consumers out of the mindset of buying imported rubbish. We expect more bricks ‘n’ mortar shops will close though. Every day is someone’s birthday or wedding anniversary or school history project day… so, our plan for 2018 is just to carry on being here when people need us.”
The party industry in three words: Cheap Chinese imports.
