How did you become a retailer?
My family was in retail and I always knew I wanted to be as well. I started with a Saturday job selling shoes, and when I came to London, I worked at Selfridges as a senior manager. Then I was offered a position with Asda when it was developing its George section. I worked up to duty manager, which is when I got into food retailing. I then had a career break for two years to have my son. Asda held my job open but my husband worked as a solicitor in the city so we would have needed a nanny - that's when we decided to go into business together.
What do you like most about being a retailer?
The reason we started the business was so we could be more flexible and look after our son ourselves. I get up early to open the store while my husband drops our son off at school. I pick him up later.
What do you hate?
Traffic wardens! They hide around the corner. I'm for ever taking 20p out of the till to give to the customer to pretend they've just come in for change for parking.
What's the best advice anybody has ever given you?
If you're going to do something, don't do it half-heartedly - put everything you've got into it if you want to succeed.
What's good about the location of your shop?
It's in an affluent, densely populated area with flats above it, Brunel university to one side, and a hospital nearby.
Who is your best customer?
It's always been students but we're getting more people in for a big family shop now.
What would you have done if you hadn't gone into the business?
I would have gone back to Asda, to the position I left.
If you had your time over, would you do anything differently?
When we set out we invested in the best of everything, so I wouldn't do anything differently.
My family was in retail and I always knew I wanted to be as well. I started with a Saturday job selling shoes, and when I came to London, I worked at Selfridges as a senior manager. Then I was offered a position with Asda when it was developing its George section. I worked up to duty manager, which is when I got into food retailing. I then had a career break for two years to have my son. Asda held my job open but my husband worked as a solicitor in the city so we would have needed a nanny - that's when we decided to go into business together.
What do you like most about being a retailer?
The reason we started the business was so we could be more flexible and look after our son ourselves. I get up early to open the store while my husband drops our son off at school. I pick him up later.
What do you hate?
Traffic wardens! They hide around the corner. I'm for ever taking 20p out of the till to give to the customer to pretend they've just come in for change for parking.
What's the best advice anybody has ever given you?
If you're going to do something, don't do it half-heartedly - put everything you've got into it if you want to succeed.
What's good about the location of your shop?
It's in an affluent, densely populated area with flats above it, Brunel university to one side, and a hospital nearby.
Who is your best customer?
It's always been students but we're getting more people in for a big family shop now.
What would you have done if you hadn't gone into the business?
I would have gone back to Asda, to the position I left.
If you had your time over, would you do anything differently?
When we set out we invested in the best of everything, so I wouldn't do anything differently.
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