14/01/2022 Customer Corner, Celebrating a remarkable business
Last year, we asked asked for nominations from inspirational customer businesses that have thrived - despite the challenges of the previous two years. Thank you to everyone who put their business forward!
So as a new year begins, we're delighted to share the first in our 'Celebrating a Remarkable Business' series - Good, a sustainable clothing retailer which launched in June 2020.
Many thanks to David Brinson, Managing Director of Good for sharing this inspirational story.
What does your business do?
We are a fashion retailer, selling preloved clothing, currently based in London with plans to expand. As a business, we believe all the clothes you could ever want are already out there. We hand pick, preloved collections of vintage, designer and high street offering customers the chance to shop guilt free and free from environmental impact. All of our clothes are sourced from recycling centres, giving an alternative to buying new. We’re here to provide a genuinely sustainable and simple antidote to fast fashion, without having to compromise on style.
How does Good stand out in the market?
Second hand shopping is poised to take over fast fashion. By the end of the decade, it is predicted that the sector will grow to $80 billion, with fast fashion at $43 billion. As it stands, it is easier to buy second hand online. To shop on the high street, the current options are charity shops and vintage shops. Though both are amazing, they are not for everyone and can put the traditional high street shopper off. At Good, we are a second hand high street alternative. We have high street labels, designer and vintage that are all much more affordable than buying new. We curate our collections in the manner of a mainstream retailer and our shops are contemporary and inviting, making it easy for second hand novices to find the things they love.
How have you triumphed in the face of adversity?
Most of our journey has been adversity. We left our previous jobs in February 2020 with the hope of opening our first shop in April 2020, unfortunately Coronavirus had other plans! We eventually opened in June that year and received a very positive response despite many shoppers feeling nervous to be out and about. At Good, our business has always been about expansion, we want to bring preloved fashion to the masses, with this in mind we set about opening our second shop on Kensington Church Street, with a planned opening date of November 2020. Unknowing that we were looking at lockdown number 2! We finally opened in December for a short amount of time before the third lockdown. It was a very difficult year but we survived thanks to hard work, an amazing team and some very loyal customers! 2021 has also been a challenge but we've managed to open our third shop in Seven Dials, Covent Garden. It has not been the journey that any of us planned but we have learnt so much and are a stronger business for it.
What advice can you give other businesses in the same situation?
Never give up hope (even when it’s really hard). Talk to people as much as you can, you never know who might be a contact. Make sure you understand your business and what you want to do and make that your focus. And be passionate about what you do, it will motivate you when times are hard and inspire people to believe in what you're doing.
And what next for Good?
At Good, we want to be THE name for second hand shopping, our long term plan is to be a big player on the highstreet and we believe the demand is there for that. In the short term we are working on shop four and having an online presence. We hope 2022 will be a GOOD year!
If you'd like to put your business forward, let us know here!