A moment of retail clarity with... Chloe James Lifestyle

We had the pleasure of talking to Donna Nichol, the founder of the beautiful fashion, jewellery, gifts and interiors shop Chloe James Lifestyle in St Albans.  It was an absolute delight to chat to her and find out more about her business journey.

Tell us more about how Chloe James Lifestyle came about…

Chloe James Lifestyle sells fashion, jewellery, gifts and interiors from two floors of a Tudor building on St Albans High Street.

I have always been involved with retail one way or another. After 20 years as a fashion buyer, I decided it was time to strike out on my own. My first business was a wholesale jewellery brand that I designed, sourced and sold to boutiques just like the one I wanted to own! Eventually, the desire to open my own shop got the better of me and I opened CJL in 2010.

What are your top tips for running an independent shop?

 You need to be hardworking, committed, energetic and focused. My advice would be to have a clear sense of what needs to be done and what it would be nice to do. Highlight a couple of things per day that you want to achieve, don’t overwhelm yourself with endless lists! And surround yourself with good people.

What’s been the biggest surprise product success in your product range?

Gosh, there have been lots of surprise winners over the years! I think probably the way our fashion has taken off and the popularity of our fashion shows has been one of the most wonderful things.

What’s been the highlight of your business experience to date?

Being named as one of the #SmallBiz100 in 2016 was wonderful! I got to visit Number Ten and meet the Minister for Small Business, as well as walk up and down the stairs that Hugh Grant dances down in Love Actually! We also became Theo Paphitis #SBS winners in 2017 which has meant we can attend a brilliant all day event that he puts on, totally free of charge, purely aimed at helping small businesses. I’m going for the third time this year!

What are the biggest challenges you are facing at the moment with your business?

Everyone knows that retail has had just about its worst year ever since records began in the early nineties. Town centres are struggling and both big name and independent shops are closing down. We are all facing the same problems - high rent and business rates, decreasing footfall in town centres, increasing online shopping. The challenge is to make your retail space somewhere people want to be, offer great service and, of course, irresistible products at the right price! We are also very involved with the local community, doing events with other businesses and raising money for local charities. We host a lot of our own in-store events including our very popular Ultimate Girls Night Out where we offer a styling talk and makeup demo to groups of ladies who book the shop out for themselves, and we do our twice-yearly fashion shows that now sell out in 24 hours!

What do you love about your brand?

I just love everything about Chloe James Lifestyle - from scouring trade fairs for the best jewellery and gifts to buying fashion in the West End, from merchandising the shop to serving the customers, from doing a new window display to putting on a fashion show. People say such lovely things about us that it really makes me feel proud of the brand. What I really love is that people often say that we look more expensive than we are and they are delighted to find that we’re actually very affordable.

What’s the best piece of customer feedback you’ve ever received?

People say such lovely things it’s hard to choose. One lady said she’d just been to New York and hadn’t bought anything but managed to find something in CJL! One particular one sticks in my mind because it did actually catch me off guard and brought a tear to my eye. Just as a customer was paying she said:

‘I just wanted to say thank you for all you do. I love everything in this shop and I know how much hard work it must take!’

Running a business is hard work, how do you give yourself a break?

It’s really important to look after yourself when running a small business. It’s easy to become available to people 24/7 and it’s essential to draw some boundaries. I always try to have Sunday off which usually means some form of exercise, a late brunch, the newspapers and family time. I also fit yoga in around work and always try to make time to meet up with a friend for coffee at least once a week. Oh and I book my holidays at the start of the year so that I can look forward to them.

If you could run another brand/shop/retailer for one day, which one would it be and why?

This is a hard one! I wouldn’t mind a look behind the scenes at Liberty. Or maybe I’d like to see what it’s like running an online business like Rockett St George, or something like Wolf and Badger who showcase various designers within their boutiques and online. This would only be out of interest to see what their issues are as I’m really a big fan of bricks and mortar retail and cannot imagine wanting to do anything else!