An independent clothes shop in the centre of Bromley is celebrating its success in opening - and making it through - lockdown.
Lamis Gani, 24, co-owns clothing store The Bromley Boutique in Bromley High Street with her husband.
Having opened up in the midst of lockdowns in June last year following a Covid-induced delay, Lamis and her husband were forced to adapt when more lockdowns hit late last year and early this year.
But, it was a success, and the pair have utilised the power of Instagram and other social media platforms to keep them going.
The shop sells an array of women's clothing - from loungewear to party dresses.
“Well, we survived,” Lamis told the News Shopper.
“It was a gamble to open during lockdown but my husband is really driven – and it’s been really good since.
“We opened an Instagram page at the same time as the shop and started taking orders there, and then we opened an online store in February.
“It meant that when we were in lockdown we could take orders over Instagram and do local deliveries.
“When you’re a local store like us what else can you do in a situation like the one we’ve had?”
The Bromley Boutique is located right in the heart of Bromley, and is surrounded by big names and retailers such as H&M and Zara.
Lamis said: “It’s so important to support us because we’re a family.
“We’re right bang on the high street, and we’re opposite H&M so that’s huge competition.
“It is hard – and it was especially so at the beginning – but we make sure we pay attention to our customers.
“We have really loud music and we want to show how much we value our Bromley locals as customers.”
Lamis said that she prides the store on its customer service, and wants people to feel like “part of The Bromley Boutique family”.
She explained: “As soon as a customer comes in, we just smile.
“We want them to feel so at home, so welcome, and just feel nice.
“As soon as they enter the store to the minute they leave, we’re there.
“We help them put outfits together, and coming into the Boutique isn’t like going into a normal store – it’s homely.”
Lamis also reiterated the importance of gearing her stock to her customers – having focused on promoting loungewear throughout lockdown and now, going-out attire.
She added: “I think it’s definitely really important to have an online store, and a good social media.
“We’re constantly putting content up and interacting with customers.
“We never shut down, we keep going.
“It is clear now though that people are sick of being inside, and that they just want to get back out on the high street.
“We’re 100% happy we took that lockdown gamble because we love it and it's great here."
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