Two business-owning Elgin mums are encouraging people to shop local for Mother’s Day following coronavirus pandemic impact.
Pencil Me In and IT Central are two of almost 100 businesses who are part of the Elgin Gift Card, which they hope will attract customers for Mother’s Day gifts.
Sarah Holmes set up Pencil Me In on Batchen Street in 2016 in after moving back to Scotland from England and has established a “loyal following” of customers.
She said: “I used to work for a large investment bank in Manchester. It was stressful and I knew it was time to do something else.
“When I was a little girl, I had a dream of opening my own shop and as I really love stationery and finding the perfect greetings card, Pencil Me In was a combination of all those things.
“When we opened, I didn’t know anyone and had an opening party with about 12 people. And now we’re lucky to have such a huge network and a big, local, loyal following.
“I really enjoy the customer connection, and we work hard to provide quality products that are a bit different with a friendly welcome.”
‘Keep the high street vibrant’
Mrs Holmes believes there’s been a rise in support for local businesses and this needs to continue for the sake of Elgin‘s high street.
She said: “There’s been a real interest in supporting local recently. All of our shops were impacted in the pandemic but the community really rallied around, and we couldn’t thank them enough. If you’re buying something from our business, you’re helping to keep the high street vibrant, so we can employ local people.
“Claire and Louise, who are also mums, work with me and there is a lot of flexibility and support between us. The business has seen me through two maternity leaves. It’s a massive juggling act but I’m thankful to have a strong team.
“Our cards are created by designers in the UK, many of whom are mums also employing local people, so there is a real circle of support when you shop local.
“I think it’s really important for people to support local this Mother’s Day as you’ll not only be contributing to the circle of support, you’ll likely get something that is more thoughtful and unique.”
‘We use local or we lose local’
Lee Midlane moved to Elgin for work in 2005 and set up IT Central in 2015 and doesn’t want to be anywhere else, but admits the shop has faced risk of closure.
She said: “I love Elgin and wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. We have a team of 5 and having a shop front in the town was really important to me.
“As anyone in retail or service will tell you, it has been a rollercoaster over recent years. We’ve come close to closing more than once but we don’t want to do that because people need us. Thankfully, over recent months, it has been really positive.
Mrs Midlane also sees the benefits of having her own business as it enables her to support her three children who are all on the autistic spectrum.
She explained: “I have three children; they are 27, 26 and 14 and are all on the autistic spectrum. I’ve always been in business whilst my kids have been around.
“Having my own business means if I need to be there for my family, then I can, and I take that approach to work and my team too. My perfect Mother’s Day would mean a hug, chocolate, a good book, someone else cooking dinner and not having any housework to do.”
She stressed that if people don’t shop at local businesses in Elgin, then they will be lost.
“The reality is that we use local or we lose local. Small businesses are here and we’re hanging in here for the long term but we don’t have the same resources and economies of scale that bigger businesses do, so we’re really reliant on local support.
“It’s really important to shop local, spend local and keep it local, this Mother’s Day and all year round.”
Conversation