Youngsters are being encouraged to shop for themselves at an expanding children’s gift and toy shop at Derbyshire’s Mercia Marina.
Solicitor turned businesswoman Joanne Barker has expanded and rebranded the East Midlands business she launched 16 years ago.
And the 52-year-old mum of two has placed the focus firmly on her youngest customers at her new unit on Mercia Marina’s Boardwalk retail and leisure development, near Willington.
Joanne’s new store will be three times the size of the premises she took on at the marina 18 months ago, which has enabled her to provide mini wooden shopping trolleys for her younger customers and a lowered sales counter where they can purchase their own goods.
The business, which also has stores at Sherwood Art and Craft Centre, in Edwinstowe, and Sudbury Courtyard, at the Sudbury Estate, has also changed its name from ‘The Fabric Bug’ to ‘Hettie & Sid’, named after Hettie Hedgehog and Sid Squirrel, two characters that feature on Joanne’s website.
Joanne said: “Expanding our premises at Mercia Marina allows us to create a truly engaging and immersive space where kids will want to come and shop. It is so exciting to be able to develop our bespoke service and the range of products we can offer.
“Our personalised gifts and traditional children’s toys have always been extremely popular, but now, with so much space in our new shop at Mercia Marina, we can stock items such as ride on wooden toys and have the room to create a really special shopping experience not just for adults but for children too.”
Hettie & Sid stocks traditional and sustainable toys and crafts, as well as textiles, clothes and nursery decorations.
The new lowered sales counter, which sits alongside a full-height pay station, together with the mini shopping trolleys, will provide an educational experience for the children as they make their pocket money purchases.
Joanne said: “We wanted to create an engaging space for all. A place where children can come along and enjoy browsing and shopping just like their adult companions. It should be a fun learning experience and if youngsters want to pay for their purchases themselves, they can step right up and do so at a ‘their size’ counter that is right for them.”
Joanne launched The Fabric Bug back in 2008, giving up her career as a solicitor to focus on her children. She first delved into the retail business as a way to balance work and family life effectively. Having “got the bug” for crafting and fabrics, and also driving a VW beetle, she named the business The Fabric Bug and started selling online and at local craft fairs.
As the business and her children grew, she expanded, opening her first shop in The Sherwood Art and Craft Centre, Edwinstowe, in 2017. Her first marina store opened in 2023 and, just a few weeks ago, she opened her third shop at Sudbury Courtyard.
The new Mercia Marina store is the largest of the three stores, enabling Joanne to expand her range of products to include larger items.
The business now employs a team of 10 over the three stores, in age ranges from a 16-year-old to what Joanne diplomatically refers to as “the grandmother age bracket”.
Nottingham born and bred, and now living in Staffordshire, Joanne is proud to champion the East Midlands region.
She said: “Each shop location is an ‘experience location’ with a really good cafe nearby. Mercia Marina is just a beautiful setting and there is such a good mix of retail here. My husband has an office here so I’d already seen just how busy it can be, which is why we opened a shop here 18 months ago.
“Our own personal expansion is in line with the Marina’s forward thinking, customer first attitude. I’m very excited about the Marina’s steps for expansion and development.”
Robert Neff, general manager at Mercia Marina, said: “It’s so great see Joanne’s business expanding. She is a wonderful asset to the marina’s shopping experience.
“As Derbyshire’s largest waterside marina attraction, we provide the whole package when it comes to a destination venue with a range of shops, restaurants, bar, beauty salon – and even a fine art gallery.
“All this alongside our boating and mooring heritage, wildlife area and holiday lodges. Plus, we have further plans ahead. We wish Joanne the very best for the future of her business.”
The Hettie & Sid store at Mercia Marina opens on Saturday, August 17, and is hosting a promotional launch event on the weekend of Saturday, August 31 and Sunday, September 1.
For more information, visit www.merciamarina.co.uk and www.hettieandsid.co.uk.