In which we conclude and draw plans for the future.
Thanks for staying with me this far. This chapter is short but sweet.
Covid did us good in a number of ways. I think it helped us expand our community of regular customers and focused me on communicating our intentions better. The Facebook group was extremely important in this as it was more immediate and far more “two way”. I could offer advice and information and explain our plans and actions and people could share their thoughts. This is extremely valuable to the business. We listen. I learned this from Farad Azima, the MD of Mission back in the day.
I think Covid also reminded some of us how important music was and is in our lives and particularly when things get tough. I know we’re not the only business to have benefited from this “reboot” but it seemed to be quite invigorating. I think it also made me want to fight harder for the business against all the negativity, the collapse of the High Street and the attempt to derail retail as we once knew it. The attack from all sides can only be resisted by a healthy business and that comes from repeat customers and customer loyalty. For which we are always extremely grateful.
I’ll pause for a rant and it is something that is close to my heart so I hope you’ll indulge me. Big business is destroying retail. It happens because “customers want it” or so we’re told. Big business offers low low prices and no service and that is something that customers want. Or so we’re told by the press and by market analysts.
Big business is also heavily influential and uses its power and promise to get rate reductions and to sway the way councils and government change the playing field. An example of this is the promise to tax web companies operating on brownfield sites (or even outside the UK) to act as a levy to aid retailers who invest in premises and local staff. Various governments have promised this but it never happens. So the larger retailers have massively reduced overheads. And they often pay little or no actual tax in the countries in which they operate. They often pay minimum wage or worse and use the gig economy to opt out of liability to their employees.
This isn’t me whining about competition. We’ve faced competition for over forty years and we have nothing to fear unless the game is rigged. Which it increasingly is and all the players that do the rigging are immense and often of a size that governments like ours simply will not tackle. As such they are able to destroy the high street without fear of repercussion and then claim that the customers are simply voting with their feet. Strangely the press peddle the same message.
Because of this we’ve accepted that we’ll get no help from this government or any that has gone before it. Claims to foster a competitive market usually involve big shlock web businesses who sell stuff a bit cheaper and pay little or no tax. This is extremely curious but I’ll leave it at that.
We believe you need to see and hear the products you’re interested in and we believe firmly that you need to talk to like minded people and enthusiasts in order to make the most informed decision. Retail should be fun and the experience of buying something should be pleasant. We’re not selling tins of beans. That’s why we invest in good premises, have relaxing listening rooms and fill our store with great products.
Our Woodseats store ticked all the boxes. Better in fact that Fitzwilliam Street before it. It also had car parking and this is vital for us and our customers. Business stayed good after the various re-openings and you can bet we opened up as soon as we could and served customers properly.
A website redesign took a lot longer than expected because the previous hosts went out of business and we could not access the site's location. At the eleventh hour we launched our new website as .com and then eventually accessed the co.uk address as well. This has slowly increased in terms of day to day sales, particularly with regard to ex demo, special offers and used equipment. We also sell on eBay, although quite frankly I don’t expect that to last for too much longer as the eBay market seems to be collapsing. It also remains an expensive route to market.
Sadly earlier this year we lost Doug McCarthey and this was a real loss for us. He was a valuable and valued member of the team and was well liked by our customers and our business partners (suppliers). However, nobody is irreplaceable and shortly after, Kev joined us and quickly became at home within the business.
The Future
It’s hard to believe but next year we’ll have been on Woodseats for ten years. We’ve extended our lease and expect to be here for at least another five years. We will extend this further if we can. By can I mean provided the local conditions haven’t changed around us. We’re already hearing rumours that major changes will be made to Woodseats, with regard to traffic. I have been thinking for a long time that “traffic reduction” measures would force us to move again. I hope that isn’t the case but suspect and am planning in case it is. It may simply be that the council doesn’t want cars anywhere in the city center or secondary retail areas like Woodseats and Hillsborough. It will start out as a ULEZ style system of fines and extend to traffic-free zones.
If that were to be the case we will have to move and it will be the last move of my working life and I am not going to move to anywhere that could suffer the same fate. So that means either in the countryside or somewhere on an industrial unit off an A road.
This would force us to change the dynamic of our business but we would fully intend to remain open for traditional retail as well as continuing to develop our online presence.
I’ll hold my hands up and say I don’t like change. Generally we have it forced on us and are told it is for our own good. An example of this is the banks telling us nobody wants to go in branches any more so it is only sensible for them to close them. We all know this is simply lies to enable them to offer us less service, drop the personal touch and give them the upper hand in dealing with us. And of course when we change banks we get the same old same old. It is the same with our utilities, many of the products and services we buy online and it’s getting similar when you try to get a doctor's appointment.
So Moorgate will remain the antithesis of and an antidote to that for as long as I am able/willing to work. When the outside interference gets too much or too crushing, then it might be time to throw the towel in or to try to find someone with their own vision for the future. My vision is planted heavily in the past and I’m not ashamed to admit it.
Whatever happens we’ll keep you informed and we’ll continue to share our journey with those who wish to read it.
I’ll sign off by thanking you for reading this and for staying with me to the end. These things are written to be read and it's mostly been an enjoyable trip into the vaults at the base of my head. I’ll also thank you for your support and for your custom. Businesses like ours only exist when customer support exceeds costs. At its simplest, running a business IS customer service and relations.
Finally; the conversation goes on. Talk to me and my staff in whichever manner you prefer and we’d be glad to answer any questions regarding any of our history and of course our plans for the future.
Bye for now
Paul Hobson