Easter is a very busy trading period for us and this year it falls very early. As well as an extensive range of chocolate eggs and Easter gifts, this time of year brings new Spring ranges into stores, which involves rearranging and moving merchandise to promote the new lines.

I really enjoy springtime; the weather is generally better (fingers crossed), with more people out and about to visit the store and lots of new lines every week. We always take the opportunity to do a spot of spring cleaning as the new stock is introduced and the winter stock withdrawn – we can get round to all those little jobs that there wasn’t time to do before Christmas.

We’ve got some exciting new ranges this spring, clothing lines in brighter colours, sandals instead of boots and gardening stock back on the shopfloor. The store has a brighter, fresher feel, which is fitting for the time of year. We’re also awaiting confirmation of our new budgets for the year ahead and looking forward to meeting the challenges of our targets.

Despite the tough retail climate, I’m pleased to say that we are still beating last year’s figures. With all the talk of lower consumer spending and credit crunch fears, retailers nationwide are generally apprehensive about what lies ahead for this year, but I’m confident that, with our wide range of value-for-money products, we will continue to flourish.

So, may I wish you Happy Easter trading. Don’t eat too many eggs and let’s hope for a busy and prosperous start to springtime and finish the year-end on a high.

Store manager’s diary by Malcolm Oyston, The Original Factory Shop, Minehead

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