Quirky gift shop owner stands by decision to open second store in new area of Northamptonshire
The owner of a quirky gift shop stands by her decision to open a second store in a new area of the county, after bouncing back from the closure of her original premises earlier this year.
Lindsey Scott-Walker established Feather Robins Gifts in St Crispin Retail Village in September 2022, in the hope of becoming a one stop shop for all customers’ gifting needs.
She planned to set up an online gift shop in April of that year, but fell in love with the premises in Kent Road, St Crispin Retail Village.
A year and eight months on from launching Feather Robins, Lindsey opened a second store in Weston Favell Shopping Centre in May 2024.
However, the business owner made the sad decision to close her shop in St Crispin Retail Village in March this year due to a massive increase in costs and a decrease in footfall.
Lindsey stands by that decision and as the dust settled, she was pleased to celebrate her first year at Weston Favell Shopping Centre.
As the end of the lease neared at the Duston premises, Feather Robins Gifts secured a new shop in Sheaf Street, Daventry and Lindsey opened the doors at the start of October.
“It’s been a learning curve,” Lindsey told this newspaper. “There are no offices around Daventry and the footfall declines after 3pm as no one pops in on their way home from work.
“There’s different trading hours and this is a real local town for local people. We’re busier on market days, which are Tuesday and Friday.”
Lindsey was asked what feedback she has received from her new Daventry community, and what they like most about the Feather Robins experience.
“They’re loving it,” she said. “I believe many years ago there was a shop called Serendipity, and people have said it’s like that has returned. They say it’s perfect and we needed this.
“It’s predominantly independents on Sheaf Street and people can go from shop to shop, and each one offers something different.”
As well as having already built up a loyal following in Daventry during the first month, it has been a highlight for Lindsey that previous regulars of the Duston store have paid the new shop a visit.
The stock remains similar across both stores while Lindsey continues to build the Feather Robins brand, but she says the aesthetic differs between the two premises – as Daventry is a listed building and some aspects resemble the former Duston store.
Lindsey was asked what message she wants to send to the Northamptonshire community about the importance of supporting independent businesses in the run up to Christmas.
“It’s huge,” she said. “We’ve noticed that since the bank shut on the ground floor of Weston Favell Shopping Centre, our footfall and sales have declined significantly. We were 25 percent down one week compared to the same week last year.”
Lindsey admits she never anticipated that the closure would have a knock-on effect on Feather Robins, but says the older generation value safe banking and would visit especially for that.
Although Lindsey is trying to catch her breath after the opening, she looks forward to getting involved in lots of community events in Daventry – and encourages anyone interested to keep an eye on the business’ social media pages.