Standing still, not moving. The dust has (literally) settled on our small shop, frozen in time since late March, a time when like many others around us we felt unsure of what the future would bring. But here we are, today, venturing back to wipe that dust clean off the shelves, and metaphorical cobwebs off ourselves. The last bit isn’t strictly true: yes, the shop has been shut and much of the work that comes with it has dried up, but we have been doing as beavers do, and beavered. New opportunities have sprung up for us to fill our time, mainly in the form of our new moonlighting career as home school teachers.
We have taken this time out to do those type of things normal circumstances don’t usually allow for. So, some fresh eyes on the website, the look and feel of it (‘we should write a blog!’), the customer experience and a complete overhaul of our wedding collection.
A constant thought would be what our business will look like when things return. Running the shop will be a struggle with social distancing guidelines, as it is so small. People rightfully like to browse around it unhurriedly, our paper products need touching, fanning, pens need trying out and we don’t really have the manpower to corral and enforce some of the guidance when we also need to attend to the not insignificant task of printing (and everything else). So, appointment only? Wait until the kids are back at school? Eek. For now, we sadly remain closed to the public, but we will review all the time (I mean this, we avidly, obsessively digest government daily briefings) and for the time being wish all our independent shop friends all the best if they are able to open now.
But we push on, and will continue to do so. There is more lovely stuff from our shop to buy online, if you are local we can probably deliver to you directly, we are excitedly talking to couples about their wedding planning for next year and beyond, and starting to get enquiries again for letterpress business card printing, personalised stationery, birth announcements, save the date cards, and plenty of ‘change’ the date cards too. The press is whirring and that’s our favourite sound of all. We are not standing still, we are moving. Not stationary, but back to stationery.