New Northampton boutique opens two days before lockdown as owner remains optimistic

A boutique shop in Northampton has had to open two days early due to the introduction of a second national lockdown.

The Boutique by Lovecats at the St Crispin Local Centre, Kent Road, Upton was due to open on Thursday (November 5).

However, due to the impending lockdown, the owner, who also has a boutique in Long Buckby, decided to get the shop ready so it could be open for two days before having to close again.

Despite only receiving the keys to the property ten days ago, Lisa Newlyn-Jones has managed to turn ‘the shell’ into a ‘glamorous’ shop in time to open today (November 3).

Lisa said: “I signed a contract to be here so I will have to be here regardless and I was nearly ready anyway.

“We wanted to show the shop off as soon as possible and I had more than 700 people on my Facebook page for this shop waiting to see what I would do next so I had to do it.

“I was in a bit of shock when I heard we would have to shut and then I felt a bit teary, but then I just thought ‘what am I going to do to change this situation?’ and I decided we had to open on Tuesday.”

With a strong support network, a rapid delivery of hangers and moving stock from her other shop, Lisa managed to get the new premises open, which has seen a ‘steady flow’ of customers on its opening day.

She added: “We needed to open for a couple of days, so we worked day and night to get everything ready and to get the painting finished.

“We just about got it ready and ship-shaped last night.

“It’s such a tragic tale, but I don’t feel sad now, I feel proud that we managed to do it."

Lisa’s first shop called Lovecats Boutique in High Street, Long Buckby opened in May 2019 selling art and fashion.

The business remained successful during the first lockdown, relying on social media videos, click and collect and deliveries, so much so that Lisa wanted to open in another location, which is when she found the Upton venue that she signed for less than a month ago.

“I wanted a local shop with a car park and I have friends in this area,” she continued.

“It was already a clothes shop previously and it thought it was such a nice space.

“I have suppliers I buy from, but I wanted to make this shop different from my other one so I can double my customers rather than split them.

“We have everything from £17 T-shirts, to designer jackets; kids, women's, handbags and gifts.

“We also have wings on the wall to take selfies in. We tried to think of all sorts.”

The shop will be open tomorrow (November 4) from 10am until 6.30pm before it then has to close for at least a month.

As with the previous lockdown, Lisa will continue her businesses by posting videos of her wearing products on her social media pages and restarting click and collect and deliveries.

Search ‘The Boutique by Lovecats’ on Facebook to find out more.

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