It’s starting to click for fashionistas
Boutique owner gets a boost in sales as her DIY fashion self ies go viral
A BOUTIQUE owner has taken the plunge and gone online for the first time after the public health emergency forced the closure of her three family-run shops.
Adeline Harty started making daily videos for her Facebook and Instagram pages showing off the pieces available in the Lisa Baker boutiques – while at the same time minding her 10-monthold daughter with whom she is isolating.
‘We weren’t online, we were a bit frightened of it,’ she said. ‘We had three busy stores and I suppose we felt maybe we didn’t need it at the time.
‘But then suddenly we had no shops open and I wouldn’t even want to say many thousands worth of stock is sitting there idle, so we’ve just set up online. I’m selling from the house at the moment and it’s going really well.’
Ms Harty runs the shop in Nenagh, Co. Tipperary and her parents run two Dublin branches – in Castleknock and Lucan – while her sister Lisa is also involved in the business.
They have had to shut all three stores and let staff go. As her parents are now isolating in Co. Clare, Ms Harty has taken taking over the running of the business.
From her home in Naas, Co. Kildare, Ms Harty is posting a video every day of herself wearing one of the outfits, which she says has resulted in sales but, she hopes, has also given people some welcome respite from Covid overload.
‘I do a little video from my spare room every day with my daughter in the corner, crying, and I’m trying to keep her quiet while I try on clothes,’ she said.
‘It’s a bit of a nightmare now, I’m not going to lie... trying to keep her quiet and get the video going.’
She calls it the ‘Fashion Distraction’ and says although it is nothing like having three physical shops open, the videos have started to direct people to her website.
And she feels her online presence has other benefits.
‘It’s connecting with my customers. I feel a bit isolated myself because I’m away from all my friends and family and my customers – I’m used to being in a shop six days a week chatting and meeting people and it’s just a way to reconnect with everybody,’ she said.
‘I get lovely messages online of people saying it’s taken their mind off the lockdown – looking at a bit of style. And customers seem to love it because it’s just a distraction from what’s going on.’
She said people are much more likely to buy comfy loungewear than dressy outfits at the moment because, with pubs and restaurants closed, there’s nowhere to get dressed up for.
Ms Harty says her best seller is a hoodie by Irish brand Deck.
‘I have just sold and sold and sold it again,’ she said. ‘It’s my best-selling jacket, and what I’m really happy about is it’s an Irish brand run by an Irish guy, and I’m delighted to be giving him a bit of support because it’s all about keeping the economy going.’
As part of its Shop Ireland campaign, DMG Media, which owns the Irish Mail on Sunday, is highlighting how businesses around the country are making the best of the crisis, and is providing editorial coverage and advertising space for small businesses.
Ms Harty successfully applied as part of the campaign.