We have great fun, when visiting trade fairs, trying to work out what would be great for the shop. We usually always end up going with a product/toy/label when both Bettina and I know we have seen something special. Sometimes we're wrong and we fall in love with a product that we 'just know' our customers will love too, and as it transpires...they don't. But then sometimes we get it right and it's such a great feeling when our customers are excited by what they see when they visit the shop. Here are some of our and our customers favourites.
These Micro Scooters have taken the UK by storm. My kids have them, Bettina's daughter has them and as I wrote
here, the whole of Hither Green's kids seem to have embraced this fantastic mode of transport!
These are fantastic for creative and role play. Clever Box Club was created by very clever architect, Elaine McCabe. The company came up with the genius idea of exploiting children’s fascination with packaging and remodelled it. They then went on to become one of the runaway hits of last year’s Christmas toy retailing.
So cool and even cooler is that when your child isn't playing with it, it can be folded, just as you would a cardboard box, with the bottom and top not taped together and hidden behind a wardrobe. Cooler still is the fact that when your child has outgrown their play house, it can be thrown in the recycling bin. Not that your child would ever get bored with this toy!
And then finally, there's the lovely Little Lily range...
When Bettina and I saw these cute dresses at Top Drawer, along with the rest of Calla Lily's range, we got very...excited. After much deliberation, we went for a small selection of their spring/summer collection but could quite easily have gone with all their collection, Autumn and Winter as well!
As we are predominatly a nearly new children's clothes shop, we often have people browsing for a gift for a child and not realising until we explain, that most of the clothes aren't new, such is the quality of nearly new clothes we select. So to address this issue, we also stock a small range of new clothing from small labels and try to go with clothes that we feel work well alongside our nearly new ethos. The same goes with the toys. Saturdays are our busiest day and is also, 80 percent of the time the day to buy birthday/christening gifts.
Click here here and here to see some more of our favourites