Generally you need loads of money to help you get set up if you want to create an environment to sell products you make yourself or even products that aren't available in the area. To set up a shop by yourself you will have large overheads, need to increase your prices to cover these and you'll be likely to struggle hand to mouth as you find you can not compete with the 'big boys'.
We are a group of small, independent, traders and producers who are creating a space to change this situation. By sharing a larger space and selling complimentary products, many made by the sellers themselves or unique to the area, we can cut the costs of our overheads. This means we don't have to put up our prices, one of the main reasons independent traders suffer at the hands of the larger retailers.
Not only that, but we can support each other rather than be isolated in our own little units. Part of the rents for the space will be put towards publicity, something that new traders tend not to be able to afford when they're trying to pay all their other bills. The cost of space will depend on how much you want but it will compare favourably with space being available for as little as £20 to £30 per week. If someone can only afford a couple of hundred quids worth of stock but wants to get started they can take a small space and we'll help them onto the ladder.
What are we looking for- Well, it's no good trying to compete directly with the larger retailers. We are looking for products that are unique or aren't readily available in West Yorkshire. There is an 'alternative' slant on the offer to customers. So far we have people selling tarot, crystals and other new age products, antique jewellery, magnetic healing, watches and hand made clocks, made to measure gothic and Victorian clothing, wooden carved furniture and ornaments from the Far East, specialist chocolate, teas and coffees, handmade soaps, an herbalist, a reiki healer, a crystal healer and a small number of artists who want to display their works.
We still have space available. We would particularly welcome artists and crafts people as well as anyone selling organic, fair-trade, environmentally friendly products (we recognise not everything in the unit will conform to this standard but we aim to make as much as possible available that does).
There will be an ancillary cafe in the space as well, with seating for about 30 people. We will be running evening workshops every week on everything from learning Reiki, Crystal Healing, the Tarot, Wicca workshops, and have the potential for arts and crafts workshops too.
As well as people standing over their own space we are looking to have wall or shelf space available for artists and crafts people to rent and display their products. We will sell it and the producer will get ALL the money from the sale. We will only take the rent for the space available. The cost of this space could be as little as a few pounds a week for a piece of work to be displayed and not much more for space on a couple of shelves.
We see this very much as an incubator space for new, independent businesses. People who want to sell their stuff but can't find a bog standard outlet for them. One sign of success would be if, a couple of years down the line, people were able to leave the unit and afford a shop nearby of their own. Having built a client base and a range of products to offer people they would have done their market research in a safe environment.
The space itself is in Dewsbury. It is sited on the junction of one of the main entrances in to the town, near the market. Historically it is known as the old Bickers department store site. If you find the 'Tapps' pub it is the shop opposite that is boarded up with black boards, and the floor above.
If you are interested in finding out more you can contact me, Paul Battye, on 0777 913 0785, 01924 440393 or via e-mail at blackbat@btconnect.com
Alternative Retail Outlet for Creatives