Show Notes:
If you think you have to be on FB to grow your business, guess again!
Meet Millie Blackwell – Owner of Mrs. Blackwell’s Village Bookshop in Greytown, New Zealand!
Before opening her shop in December 2020, she and her husband owned digital businesses and did a lot of home renovations. Her shop is perfect for romantic, curious minds and romantic souls, a shop filled with books and creative items such as notebooks, jigsaw puzzles, fountain pens, stationary, etc.
Because Millie opened her shop during the height of the pandemic, she really had to work hard to build their market base in unique and creative ways. Storytelling has been a successful marketing strategy for them with print ads, Instagram, and their quarterly newsletter: The Blackwell Bugle. Fun fact: Millie doesn’t use FB!
All of Millie’s business marketing decisions are based on building community and becoming a destination shop. Listen to her attract strategies, and how they go against the grain and are working for her. She’s doing it her way and making connections, human to human.
Millie is a member of our Level Up and Accelerate Mastermind group and works hard at business development, and pays close attention to tracking, measuring, tweaking, training, and focusing on foot traffic. Millie is on her way to her 2023 goal of becoming a million-dollar bookshop!
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Radio Republic | YouTube | PlayerFM | Stitcher | iHeartRadio
A Quick Glance:
[0:31] Mrs. Blackwell’s Village Bookshop
[5:08] Greytown + more
[8:52] Marketing
[19:24] Million-dollar bookshop goal
[25:17] Struggles
[27:01] What’s coming & a quote
[30:46] Closing remarks
About Millie:
Mrs. Blackwell is a specialist in non-fiction categories and stationery. She grew up on an apricot orchard in Central Otago but never really cared for the taste of the fruit. Mrs. Blackwell’s Village Bookshop is an independent bookshop for inquisitive minds and romantic souls in Greytown, New Zealand.
Website | Instagram | Four Thousand Weeks
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Resources Mentioned:
Business and Planning Guide
Retail Made Simple
Level Up Mastermind
Foot Traffic Made Simple
Retailer’s Inner Circle
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For more support from Wendy:
Retail Made Simple – Wendy’s on demand course for shop owners wanting more from their business
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Grab your earbuds and listen in with me!
