Pam Charman, branch chairman of the Hertfordshire branch of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is delighted that member Donna Nichol has been named among the 100 small businesses in the UK to be celebrated by Small Business Saturday, the campaign that culminates in the UK’s dedicated day for small businesses on 3 December.
Donna is proprietor of Chloe James Lifestyle a shop selling fashion and interiors products from five rooms over two floors of a Tudor building on St Albans. The shop, which opened its doors in 2010 and is named after Donna’s children, was launched during the last recession with the aim of offering unusual gifts, jewellery, home and fashion products. It will now be among the select number of businesses to be featured by the campaign, one per day for the 100 days leading up to Small Business Saturday itself.
Donna said: “I love this business, everything from sourcing the products to the visual merchandising to chatting with the customers and being involved in the local community. There is nothing more rewarding than seeing an existing customer bring in their friends and hearing them say, ‘I love this shop! You’ve got to come in and take a look…you won’t believe it!’
I strongly believe that independent shops and restaurants create a point of difference for any town centre and we are working hard to keep our own High Street alive. I really admire the work of both Small Business Saturday and FSB’s Keep Trade Local campaign. They are both ensuring that we keep our town and city centres exciting.”
Pam Charman said: “St Albans is a vibrant city with lots of great small businesses. This gives it the edge when attracting new shoppers into the city centre. It is businesses like Donna’s that are so important.”
