How to build a profitable online shop while ignoring 'best practices'

Around half of high street shops could soon pay no business rates at all. So why do so many of the retailers I speak to still feel let down by this Budget? Hi, I'm retail strategist and founder of Resilient Retail Club, Catherine Erdly. On Wednesday 28 October, John Healey delivered his first Budget as Chancellor, and for retailers there was a lot riding on it. Rises in employer National Insurance and the National Living Wage have added an estimated £6.5 billion to retail employment costs in the last couple of years. Plenty of independent shops are busy, loved by their customers and working flat out, and still struggling to keep enough cash in the business. Going in, most people I spoke to had high hopes and fairly low expectations. In this episode I go through what was actually announced and who it really helps: the business rates changes for shops in England, the new National Living Wage from April 2027, the VAT change for anyone selling through online marketplaces, and the help with household energy bills. But the headlines don't tell the whole story. A higher threshold doesn't help every shop, a "freeze" doesn't always mean your bill stays the same, and some of the support won't arrive until well after Christmas. You'll also hear how one Marlow boutique owner felt when the news landed. By the end, you'll know which changes are likely to affect your business, what you need to build into next year's forecast, and where to put your energy with the biggest sales months of the year right ahead of us. If you've been wondering whether this Budget is good news or bad news for your shop, press play. Chapters 00:00 Why so much was riding on this Budget 04:04 Better timing, and the business rates changes 06:56 Wages, marketplace VAT and help with energy bills 09:51 A shop owner's reaction, and my advice for Christmas Useful links Find your shop's rateable value (GOV.UK): https://www.gov.uk/find-business-rates Business rates relief explained (GOV.UK): https://www.gov.uk/business-rates-relief Stock Doctor, my done-for-you stock service: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/stock-doctor/ Twenty Three Living, Marlow: https://twentythreeliving.co.uk Barbakan Deli on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbakandeli/ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/catherineerdly More episodes of The Resilient Retail Game Plan: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast/ Mentioned in this episode: Capify

Your shop window is your hardest-working unpaid employee. This Christmas, is it pulling its weight? Hi, I'm retail strategist and founder of Resilient Retail Club, Catherine Erdly. This episode is brought to you by our sponsor Capify - business funding made simple. Find out more at capify.com If you're an independent retailer, you're probably about to put up your Christmas window display, or you've already planned it. But a pretty window isn't the same as one that sells. For most independents, the quickest Christmas win isn't finding more customers. It's each customer spending a little more. So what does a window have to do to make that happen? And what's it doing for you at 10 o'clock at night, when the door is locked and it's been dark for hours? To find out, I brought back visual merchandiser Sarah Manning. Sarah has worked in visual merchandising for more than 20 years, starting at Harrods, Selfridges and Harvey Nichols, and she has run her own consultancy since 2006. When we spoke she was in the middle of planning Christmas schemes for her own clients, so this is what she's actually doing this season, from a fashion client's window to a food retailer whose shelves are every colour going. By the end of this episode you'll know how to build one Christmas look that runs from your window to your shelves and your website, and why three colours is the limit. You'll know how to use your window and the area just inside your door to sell a gift rather than a product, so each customer spends more. And you'll know when to put your window in, when to refresh it, and how to keep it selling after you've locked up. Chapters 00:00 Why your Christmas window matters 02:44 One theme, three colours, window to website 06:50 Sell a gift, not a product 10:51 When to install, refresh and light it Resources and links Sarah Manning, Visual Merchandising Consultant: https://visualmerchandisingconsultant.co.uk/ Sarah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/visualmerchandisingcourses/ The UK prop suppliers Sarah uses: http://www.dzd.co.uk/ The colour trend sites Sarah mentions: WGSN https://www.wgsn.com/ · Coloro https://www.coloro.com/ · Pantone https://www.pantone.com/ Sarah's first episode, on shop windows and the power of the pyramid: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast-episode/retail-window-display-ideas-for-shops-that-turn-browsers-into-buyers/ My free Christmas guide and planner (put your end-of-November refresh in it): https://www.resilientretailclub.com/christmas Give your windows a Christmas makeover? Tag me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/resilientretailclub/ All episodes of the Resilient Retail Game Plan: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast/ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/catherineerdly The Resilient Retail Game Plan shares retail industry trends, insights, and best practices for the retailer who's serious about building something that lasts. New episodes every Thursday morning.

It's so easy to shop online. So why would anyone spend their precious time coming to see you in a shop? Hi, I'm retail strategist and founder of Resilient Retail Club, Catherine Erdly. This episode is brought to you by our sponsor Capify - business funding made simple. Find out more at capify.com Last week I asked whether bricks-and-mortar shops need a website. This week I'm turning the question around: do online brands need a physical store? Your customer doesn't think in channels. She finds you on Instagram, pops in on a Saturday, orders another colour on her phone that evening and brings something back the following week. Shopify's research shows 41% of UK shoppers plan to split their shopping evenly between online and in-store, which leaves every online brand with the same awkward question. If the website always wins on convenience, what is a shop actually for? And once you've added up the rent, rates, staff, fit-out and stock, can it ever pay its way? To find out, I spoke to Dessislava Bell, who co-founded the womenswear brand Saint + Sofia with her husband Malcolm. They sold online only for almost five years and reached more than 800,000 customers around the world before opening their first shop on Monmouth Street in Covent Garden in November 2024. Dessi is the spreadsheet lover in their partnership, so I wanted to know exactly how she judges whether the shop is working. You'll also hear from Sally Hughes Daniels, CEO of the activewear brand TALA, which opened its first shop on Carnaby Street last year, and from Emilie Benoit-Vernay, Shopify's Director of Revenue for EMEA. By the end of this episode you'll know the jobs a shop can do for an online brand beyond the takings, how to choose the one you want yours to do, and how to find out whether your customers want to meet you before you sign a lease. You'll also hear the one thing that changed how Dessi sees physical retail. And if you already run a shop, stay with me, because what happens when someone walks through Saint + Sofia's door is something you could copy tomorrow. Chapters 00:00 Why would anyone visit an online brand's shop? 03:06 What a shop can do that a website can't 07:26 Service, community and the social side of shopping 10:48 Does the shop pay its way? Resources and links My Forbes article, Why Digital-First Brands Are Moving Into Physical Retail: https://www.forbes.com/sites/catherineerdly/2026/10/02/why-digital-first-brands-are-moving-into-physical-retail/ Episode 323, the other half of this conversation (do bricks-and-mortar stores need a website?): https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast-episode/do-bricks-and-mortar-stores-need-a-website/ Saint + Sofia: https://uk.saintandsofia.com/ · TALA: https://www.wearetala.com/ My book, Tame Your Tiger: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/blog/tame-your-tiger-book/ Weighing up a pop-up, a first shop or getting more from the one you've got? Find out about Stock Doctor: https://stockdoctor.net Come and say hi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/resilientretailclub/ All episodes of the Resilient Retail Game Plan: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast/ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/catherineerdly The Resilient Retail Game Plan shares retail industry trends, insights, and best practices for the retailer who's serious about building something that lasts. New episodes every Thursday morning. Mentioned in this episode: Capify

Everyone says your shop needs a website. So why do nearly two-thirds of independent retailers make less than 10% of their revenue online? Hi, I'm retail strategist and founder of Resilient Retail Club, Catherine Erdly. This episode is brought to you by our sponsor Capify - business funding made simple. Find out more at capify.com This is part one of a two-part series, and it takes on one of the least questioned bits of received wisdom in retail: you need a website, full stop, end of sentence. I work with a lot of bricks-and-mortar shops, and I've seen first-hand the blood, sweat and tears that go into keeping a website going alongside a shop floor. The photography, the listings, the stock updates, the SEO, the emails, the orders and the returns, all squeezed in around constant interruptions, usually by a team of three people or fewer. In this episode I dig into the Voices of Retail 2026 research from Faire and Spring & Autumn Fair, including the number I haven't been able to stop thinking about: 64% of independent retailers make less than 10% of their revenue online, and yet more than half say growing online is one of their top priorities for the next 12 months. Elyse McAvoy from Faire also drops in with a reminder of why your shop matters more than ever: nine in ten shoppers say AI has made them more likely to want to see products in real life. I talk about why having a website and making money from a website are two completely different achievements, the ranking problem that quietly works against anyone who sells other people's brands, and why a shop can look brilliant online from the outside while the numbers underneath tell a very different story. By the end you'll know how to work out what job your website should really be doing for your shop, the three things I've seen make the biggest difference for independent retailers, and the single biggest missed opportunity I see most shops under-using, one that doesn't rely on winning strangers from the other side of the country. If you've ever felt guilty that your website isn't pulling its weight, or you're wondering whether it's worth the hours at all, this one's for you. Next week I flip the question: does an e-commerce brand need a bricks-and-mortar presence? Chapters 00:00 Do bricks-and-mortar stores really need a website? 02:09 The "shop without walls" promise vs the 64% reality 06:57 Why running a website is so hard for independent retailers 09:46 Shop and site as one business: what actually works Resources mentioned Voices of Retail 2026 report from Faire and Spring & Autumn Fair: https://www.faire.com/en-gb/blog/for-retailers/voices-of-retail-2026 Episode 304, what the Voices of Retail report really reveals, with Elyse McAvoy from Faire: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast-episode/independent-retailer-trends-2026-voices-of-retail-report/ Episode 321, UK retail sales summer 2026 and what it means for Christmas: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast-episode/uk-retail-sales-summer-2026/ Retail by Design, my six-month mentoring programme for established independent retailers: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/retail-business-mentoring/ All episodes of the Resilient Retail Game Plan: https://www.resilientretailclub.com/podcast/ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/catherineerdly The Resilient Retail Game Plan shares retail industry trends, insights, and best practices for the retailer who's serious about building something that lasts. New episodes every Thursday morning. Mentioned in this episode: Capify

I just wanted to let you have a quick listen to my other podcast. Fashion brand consultant Elizabeth Stiles (host of The Fashion Brand Clinic) and I teamed up to launch "The Shopping Forecast" which is a podcast that proves shopping is about so much more than what’s in your basket. Each episode we bring the receipts on current consumer trends and the cultural shifts shaping the way we shop, unpacking the psychology behind our purchases and the brands redefining consumer culture. Whether you love spotting trends before they hit the mainstream or are simply fascinated by why people buy what they buy, The Shopping Forecast is your weekly guide to the sociology of shopping.