November, I have a love/hate relationship with this month. Always our busiest month of the year but with that comes long hours, perpetual tiredness and a not inconsiderable dollop of stress that I won't be able to get all the orders out on time.
At this time of year it's not unusual for me to be the last one to leave work, having to lock up in the dark, arriving home to grab some dinner by 8 - if we are organised - work most of the evening, crawl into bed and get up early the next day to start all over again.
But this is normal for us and many independent small businesses at this time of year. All working hard behind the scenes ensuring that our customers get the best service possible.
Then along comes BLACK FRIDAY - the day after Thanksgiving, traditionally a day when retailers discount stock to boost themselves back into ‘the black’ in the run up to Christmas, a quarter of the year when many retailers have to pay rent in advance for January, February and March – not the busiest months for many.
Black Friday now, in the internet shopping world we live and rely upon, is a completely different event. The internet has turned it into a retail monster, in my opinion. Your email inbox has probably already been bombarded by your favourite online shops telling you that their ‘Black Friday’ deals are already live – many make it a 7, sometimes 14 day event!
I’m sure that the bargain hunters among you will seek out the best deals and get yourself a great price on something you have had your eye on for a while. But it won’t be found on our website or on those of many other small businesses who are just not in a position to offer massive discounts on prices.
So, why is Black Friday not for us? after all it's a massive opportunity to maximise income on a well publicised day (or week )? Well, here are some of the reasons we don’t take part - in no particular order:
– Our shelves are not full of stock of each and every item to satisfy a bargain frenzy
– There is a cost for the time it takes to process the extra work load
– Our loyal customers who willingly wait for our beautiful products to arrive, would end up waiting even longer than they do now
– Our cutters and sewers are already working flat out to keep up with demand for our hand crafted products
– We produce carefully considered products made with love and care, they carry a fair price for the customer and the person who makes them
– We would rather offer consistent prices all year round, than inflate our prices just so we can discount at key times such as Black Friday
– We don’t have a team of packers working around the clock in shifts
– We are proud to be joining a growing number of small businesses who are boycotting this Bargain Hunting Bonanza
So, if it’s bargains you seek on Friday you won’t find them here. Or I suspect, on any other online shops making each item with care and consideration with quality and customer satisfaction top of their list.
However – if you want a little reward for choosing to buy from us, you might like our multi-buy option on our Fleece Jumpers
You will get 10% off when you buy two and 15% when you buy 3 - BUT - you need to choose all from one colour group for it to apply - if you fancy colours from different catagories use the code FLLDB at the check out and 10% discount will apply.
Ladies tees are on sale at just £29 at the moment - find them here - and multi buy discount now applies to dog tees and there are still a few items on our sale page with up to 40% off - here
Please be mindful of our last ordering dates now too - we are going to try to get everything made and out but for some of our overseas customers it is getting a little tight for pre-Christmas delivery.
Thank you for sticking with us if you are a loyal customer, we can't do this without you! And if you are new to us, hello and welcome, we look forward to keeping you hound warm dry and happy in style!
Debbie
