Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
City bustles once again
Nicky Ingoldby, who runs The Clothes Horse and The Whiting Post stores in Whitstable with husband Adrian, says the lifting of restrictions could not come soon enough.
“We all understand why but the lockdown has meant losing significant business, especially over Easter,” she explained.
“We’ve been very much looking forward to welcoming our customers back but, of course, have had to implement measures to keep everyone safe. “It’s been a bit grim to be closed for so long but we have kept in touch with our many regular customers through social media who have told us they can’t wait for us to reopen.
“We’ve also knocked 20% off everything to make it even more inviting.”
Two of the first through the doors were pensioners and friends June Patterson and Pauline Keen.
They said: “We’ve really missed our visits so it’s wonderful to feel normal again.
“We’ve treated ourselves to some new dresses and tops.”
Along the High Street is the long-established Whites of Kent family business, now run by Michael White.
The relieved trader says the reopening of shops is “great news for the town”. “We took advantage of the closure to do some work on our Faversham shop and have been taking orders and delivering locally,” he added.
“But there’s nothing like seeing our customers in the shop again, where we have installed social distancing measures to keep everyone safe.”
And in neighbouring Herne Bay, independent retailers were also welcoming customers back.
Herne Bay Domestics manager Joe Vint says there was a flurry of customers from 9am.
“It’s been really busy, so much so that we had to hold people outside to limit the number in the shop,” he said.
“We have been doing some phone and online sales while closed but nowhere near as much trade as usual. Our first day back has been hectic to be honest and phones have been going non-stop.” But the restrictions pose special challenges for a number of stores, including Music Bay in Mortimer Street, which specialises in guitars and keyboards. Owner Graham Harmsworth is having to be especially careful because anyone wanting to purchase an instrument will want to test it first.
“We have an area set aside for people to try guitars but the advice is that any instrument played by someone will have to be laid up for 72 hours before it can be touched again,” he said.
“I hope customers understand. We would rather people didn’t just come in to try guitars they have no intention of buying.”