Meet the Mancunian-8.11-Claire Hines-transcript

Intro

Welcome to Season 8 of the Meet the Mancunian podcast: social impact stories from Manchester. A warm Mancunian welcome from your host, Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe. Thank you for joining me today.

Every Tuesday, I bring you the stories of Manchester's unsung heroes, the individuals who helped to create positive change in our community. My aim is to inspire you, dear listener, to follow your own passions, whether through volunteering or working in the social impact sector. I'm also keen to spotlight good causes and create more awareness and support for them.

Whether you're tuning in on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or on my website meetthemancunian.co.uk, get ready for a season filled with inspiring tales of social impact within our beloved city.

Introduction to Claire Hines and Shine

Welcome to the 11th episode of Season 8 of the Meet the Mancunian Podcast: social impact stories from Manchester.

Passionate about shared space in the community, we hear from Claire Hines, Owner, Shine in this episode.

In Claire's own words:

[00:01:13] Claire Hines: it is tough for us to match some of the prices that you can find on the high street, but I think we're constantly trying to improve that and trying to basically give the customers the best experience.

So whether that's that you maybe pay slightly more than you would one of the big supermarkets or whatever, but you might get lovely gift wrap, or you get a little handwritten note with your gift, or, just like a little something extra that you wouldn't expect.

[00:01:45] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Thank you so much, Claire, for taking the time today.

Discovering a Passion for Community

[00:01:47] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Tell us first about how you found your passion for the community. Where did that start?

[00:01:52] Claire Hines: I suppose I'm very much a people person. I love people and their stories, and I'm always interested to hear, where people have started out and their journeys. I think after having my two boys, I started volunteering at their primary school, and I became chair of the PTA fairly quickly.

And that then really solidified my links within the local community. I really got to understand, about the different families and what they were looking for. And I just was quite passionate about creating events and things both for the children and for the parents as well. And just creating new friendships and links that way. I think that's really how it started.

Life in the Cayman Islands and Moving to Sale

[00:02:38] Claire Hines: I moved to Sale having lived abroad. I actually lived in the Cayman Islands in the Caribbean and community was a really strong focus there as well, because Grand Cayman is such a small island, and you really worked on recommendations and things like that. Everybody knew each other and I think I really enjoyed that kind of experience and could see when I moved to that was already in place. But, I wanted to explore that more and really be at the heart of it.

[00:03:11] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: It's really interesting that you lived, in the Cayman Islands, which one only hears about, and it sounds beautiful and, that community spirit. We probably say Manchester, like any big city, there's a little village at heart where everybody is connected to everybody else, and collaboration is really how we meet people. I was sharing with you how I, as a new Mancunian, have really benefited from the community introducing me to other guests.

Tell us more about how you got involved with Emporium, and what Emporium does, and then of course a little more about Shine, which is your own venture.

Starting a Small Business: The Journey to Shine

[00:03:46] Claire Hines: I have always made things. I've always been creative, done sewing. I'm just experimenting with crochet at the moment, and I've just always done that my whole life. And then it got into the point of everybody saying, Oh, you should sell this and making little gifts for friends and things like that.

And I think once my children got a bit older, I really wanted something for myself. So I decided to start a small business. But the thing with retail is that, I really wanted a retail space, a bricks and mortar shop. I knew that I could set up a website. It was all brand new to me, so I didn't think it would be easy, but I knew that was an avenue that I could pursue.

But as I said, because I'm such a people person, I really wanted to be meeting my customers on a daily basis. I'd been to a lot of stores and markets in the past. And as brilliant as that is, I really wanted to have a place where I could have a toilet and heating and a roof. And so I started to look into how to go about that and it just felt totally impossible.

Emporium M33: A Community Hub for Entrepreneurs

[00:04:53] Claire Hines: Really luckily, Emporium M33 was set up in my local community about the same time I moved to Sale, actually, which is about 16 years ago. And it works along the same lines as Affleck's Palace, if you're familiar with Affleck's. There's actually over 50 independent traders that have a base in Emporium M33. And that ranges from say a fairly large retail space right down to somebody might rent one shelf.

And the beauty of it is that you don't have to be there all the time. So for anybody that has any other commitments, I have my children. I also have elderly parents who I care for. And because you don't have to be manning the shop all the time, it's really advantageous. Anybody that wants to make a purchase can just go to the main till if you're not there in your space.

I just saw it as a really good opportunity to start my business off. It's low overhead, so you can do it with fairly little risk. And that's what happened. I started with a small space at the back of the shop along with a friend of mine. And then we gradually moved to bigger spaces until we started to rent the space in the window. It's really a prime position.

And my friend decided to move on to other things, but I've kept the business going. My business is called Shine. I stock a range of eco-friendly goods. So whether it's sponges that don't contain any plastic, toothpaste tablets, laundry detergent sheets, that kind of thing, and also a range of gifts, greetings cards, candles, blankets, I always say it's anything where it would be like a treat for you or for your best friend. That's how I came to be in Emporium.

I think the other thing to mention about Emporium is that it isn't your traditional high street shop. There's a great community there and we are often the community hub. So we organise charity collections and things like that. And it's just really a great place for businesses to start off if they just want to try out their business and hopefully move on to bigger and better things as their business grows.

But also, for customers to come to get a much more friendly feel. We don't have any of those self-service checkouts or anything like that. And we really try to help every customer that comes through the door. Lots of the other local businesses send people our way because you can nearly always find what you're looking for within Emporium M33. We also have a lot of service businesses there. So we have a travel agent, we have hairdressers, a barber, beauty salon so it's a real variety of things.

[00:07:43] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Sounds really interesting. I actually haven't been to Emporium 33, or to Affleck's Palace, though I have heard about it, and now when my mum comes next month, I'm definitely going to try and make a visit. I'm sure it'll be interesting to browse, if not to buy.

Tell us more about this experience of, being your own entrepreneur in a community hub. What are the challenges that you've had to face over these, how many years have you been running the shop?

Challenges of Running a Small Business

[00:08:13] Claire Hines: So I've been in my shop for six years now, six years in April. The obvious answer straight away is COVID. With COVID and the closure of all the shops, that was a huge challenge for all of us. And it's one thing when you haven't got very high overheads.

And you've got customers coming through the door, but when that was taken away and you've still got your overheads to meet, it was really challenging. We're really fortunate that the man that runs it, Scott Lyons, was extremely generous and helped us out and offered us much more favourable rents for the periods when we were closed and things like that. So that was a huge blow and a huge challenge to overcome.

And we just did our best with it. We followed the guidelines. We wore masks when we needed to. We were very fortunate that it's a huge building. It's set over three floors. So there was a lot of space and we could give people room. So we were lucky in that respect.

Other challenges that we face, I think we're up against the big giants, aren't we? We have a lovely independent bookshop, B for Butterfly Books. They're actually next door to me within Emporium M33. And Michelle, who runs it, you know she's constantly fighting Amazon, Tesco, WHSmith. They're selling books at a cheaper rate than she can actually buy them in for. So it sometimes feels like a huge mountain.

But in saying that, we have real great support from the local community. I think the message of Shop Local is really getting spread far and wide. And people want to support us. And they, quite frankly, they have a better experience when people support us. They come in. We quite regularly do parties. We love holding a party. We love cakes and chocolate. We're often giving away all sorts of things like that. And we just try and bring the fun back into it a bit more. And of course that's something that you don't get when you're shopping online with Amazon.

[00:10:17] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Definitely sounds fun. Who doesn't like cake and a good party? All sounds very nice.

Impact and Success Stories

[00:10:23] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: What's the impact that you'd say you've made so far?

[00:10:25] Claire Hines: I really hope that I inspire other entrepreneurs and business owners to give it a go. Because I think if you have an idea, sometimes you can put barriers in your own way. But it's such a great way to just give it a go and test things out and, relatively sort of small scale, but you can build it to something much bigger.

A personal story that I'm very proud of. We have quite a lot of customers that come in, they love a chat, and they might be lonely, they might have other problems happening. And so, we have very regular customers that come in and talk to us regularly.

One of those people is my lovely friend Callum. Callum is about to turn 27. He was just telling me that today. He used to come in and chat to me. He started off working in the cafe at Emporium. And he was really struggling because he was really artistic, really creative. But he also really wanted to earn some of his own money. I don't know if I mentioned he has learning disabilities, and he doesn't live independently. And his big aim is to live independently.

And he kept coming in with these drawings that he'd done, really lovely drawings, and we would pay him for them. But, it got to a point where we said, hey Callum you're constantly trying to sell to the same people here, and we need to change this a bit. And I said, you need something with a bit more longevity. he designed a range of greetings cards. And I got them printed for him and, put in some money to get that process going. And he has been so successful, and it makes me so proud.

He's so happy that he is really making a difference to his life. He is a real fan of social media. So he'll do TikToks and things, advertising his cards. And I have had more orders on my website by an absolute country mile for his cards. And it's just brilliant. It's been a really brilliant collaboration. And we're always coming up with ideas of new things that we can do together. He's told me I've got to take him out for cake for his birthday. So that's the next thing on the list.

[00:12:39] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That's lovely. And I like that about, small ideas to come together and take an idea from a concept to reality. It's great that you're doing this together and it's obviously paying off.

What's a common myth about your field of expertise?

[00:12:56] Claire Hines: I think there's also a bit of a myth that we're all millionaires, which is definitely not the case.

When you hear the word entrepreneur, and you think immediately of Jeff Bezos or whoever, and actually, there's a lot of entrepreneurs. There's a lot of people doing their own thing. And usually not paying themselves. And that's the reality of it, I think as well.

 In terms of it being difficult to shop with small businesses, people often think that you can't support small businesses online. People are often very surprised that I have a website. I think something around that and things being more expensive.

It is tough for us to match some of the prices that you can find on the high street, but I think we're constantly trying to improve that and trying to basically give the customers the best experience.

So whether that's that you maybe pay slightly more than you would one of the big supermarkets or whatever, but you might get lovely gift wrap, or you get a little handwritten note with your gift, or, just like a little something extra that you wouldn't expect.

[00:14:02] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I must say I do enjoy getting handwritten notes from small business, especially when I buy things online and then suddenly you find that you actually bought from a small business. Nice, pleasant surprise.

Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

[00:14:14] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: What advice would you have for people looking to start a similar movement in their local community if they want to get started with a small business or they want to create a community space? How do they start?

[00:14:26] Claire Hines: I would say just go for it. It is so easy to think, oh, I couldn't do a website because it needs to be perfect, or I couldn't sell this purse that I've made because something might go wrong. There's all these things that we can do, but you just have to take that first step.

Do a craft stall or, try to find a wonderful place like Emporium where you can just rent a very small shelf or something like that. I would also say that it's about bringing people to you. So if wanted to join us at Emporium M33, it's really important that you actually advertise that you're there. Social media is fantastic, it's free, but if you're not adept at social media, there's other things you can do. Talk to people, let people know that's what you're doing. But I think really, it's about being brave and just taking that step and going for it.

[00:15:21] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That's great advice and I like that about also making sure people know because even as a small business you might have a very loyal following who might go somewhere else if they don't know where to find you, really good one.

An opportunity for you to talk about anything I haven't asked you about.

[00:15:38] Claire Hines: We're just coming to the end as we record this, of a fantastic project with some students from Manchester School of Architecture. I'm so excited about this, they've built a website for us, which is just brilliant. It shows all the traders that are involved in Emporium and there's going to be an FAQ section with really simple things like where to park, things that we all want to know about. That will be published by the time this goes out.

 We take part in something called Magic Tenner. So it's a campaign by Totally Locally. They've previously run a campaign called Fiverfest, but lots of small businesses were struggling to offer things for five pounds. And so they've changed that to Magic Tenner. We're just waiting on the new dates for that for this year. But Magic Tenner is a brilliant initiative because it's ways that you can support a small business and get a bargain for 10. So it can be all sorts of things that are offered for 10. Services can get involved as well. It doesn't just have to be retail. That's a campaign that we're always involved with.

[00:16:44] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Sounds very interesting.

[00:16:45] Claire Hines: Totally Locally. Yeah, they're based over in Hebden Bridge. And they really help small businesses across the country with campaigns like this. So it's a national campaign and something that I organise on behalf of Sale.

Signature Questions: Manchester and Beyond

[00:16:59] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I now come to the signature questions that I ask all my guests. And the first one is, if Manchester was a colour, what colour would it be and why?

[00:17:09] Claire Hines: I straight away think the Manchester Bee. So I think it has to be yellow. Are we allowed yellow and black stripes?

[00:17:17] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Course.

[00:17:17] Claire Hines: Yellow is like my favourite colour as well, but it's such a warm, happy, friendly city. And I think that fits, with that. And also industrious, like the bee. So let's go with that.

[00:17:30] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Very fond of the Manchester Bee at the Meet the Mancunian podcast, my creative has the bee as well.

If you could choose a famous landmark in Manchester to represent you, which one would it be and why?

[00:17:43] Claire Hines: Oh, there's so many to choose from that are so brilliant but so different. I'm straight away thinking of St. Peter's Square but what about the tram? The tram is quite a good one because it connects, all of the areas together. I love a tram ride. I love getting on the tram into Manchester, having a nosy in people's flats as you go by. Seeing the cardboard cutout of Taylor Swift. So I was going to go for something much more highbrow, but no, I'm going to go for the tram because it's accessible and open to all and it just provides that gateway into the city. Or you can go somewhere a bit more rural on it, it's like the opportunities are endless. So, let's go for the tram.

[00:18:30] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Love it. That's my daily commute as well, so really nice.

If you could trade lives with someone in Manchester for a day, who would it be with and why?

[00:18:40] Claire Hines: Easy. Andy Burnham, for sure. I would love to know what the challenges are and what it's actually like to be in his position. Because we all think, oh, come on Andy, sort this out, sort that out. But what's going on behind the scenes, I don't feel like we have enough awareness around that. And I really want to know if he is actually ever going to stand for Prime Minister or not. Maybe I'd find out.

[00:19:06] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Very interesting. And this is actually turning out to be quite a popular choice. A little queue of people who want to take days of his life. not the full time, but just a day.

[00:19:17] Claire Hines: I wouldn't trade jobs with him, no, but just for a little bit.

[00:19:21] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: What's the most important life lesson you've learned so far?

[00:19:25] Claire Hines: Oh, I always come back to this too shall pass. Think it's just such a brilliant phrase to come back to whether things are good or bad. Especially when you're having tough times. If you can hold on and think one day, the light's going to shine through again, it's not always going to be like this.

And that reminds me straight away of the COVID times, with the shop and feeling like we were going to have to close forever. And when is it going to end? But I think it's also really important if you have say I had a reel that went on Instagram that went a bit viral. I can't remember now how many plays it had, but it was in the thousands, which is, huge for me.

And equally, you just have to remember, no sales came from it, just to point out, because this is a myth that we often have. Isn't it? You think, oh, if you go viral, that's it, you're an instant millionaire, but no, sadly not. And, I think to hold on to, okay, this is a bit hectic today with all, and great that I'm getting all these likes, but then tomorrow I'll do a post and I'll just maybe get one like if I'm lucky. So this too shall pass whether it's, positive or negative.

[00:20:36] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: I like that very much because people tend to use that more in the negative. So I like that when you're thinking that even the good times, like we had sunshine last week. We have rain today. Having a bit of a balanced perspective. That's how you enjoy things because there'll be these highs and there'll be these lows and they'll all move on.

[00:20:57] Claire Hines: And it's making the most of it while you've got it, isn't it? Enjoy that sunshine if you can. But know that the rain is coming.

[00:21:05] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: What's the most important personality trait someone would need to work in your industry?

[00:21:10] Claire Hines: I think it's tenacity and it's the ability to pick yourself up. It's quite hard, especially if you're a solo entrepreneur to keep the motivation and to stay positive. And, when you have no customers coming through the door, you make no sales, to get up the next day and dust yourself off and say I'm going to go again.

I really think that's what it comes down to. Holly Tucker, she did some research and she worked out that small business owners tend to fall out of love with their business a few times a year, And that was massive news, but actually I think the reality is it's more like a few times a week. There are times where you think, what am I doing? And you just have to say, that's all right. Again, this too shall pass and, dust yourself off and try again, try a slightly different angle, be creative. But it's that ability to keep going.

[00:22:13] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Really interesting and things to think about because, this thing about tenacity it's hard to keep going sometimes in such circumstances. And then you need to probably just go back to your brilliant basics and say, why did I set this up in the first place? And where do I want to be?

[00:22:29] Claire Hines: That's right. And I think, talking to other business owners and where do you find your support? Having a moan, we in Emporium, we're often have a chat, or how's business been for you today? It's not been great for me. and you just need a friendly word sometimes. A second opinion. Oh, I've done this. What do you think of it? Just bits and pieces like that. And, it really goes back to finding your people and drawing that support from them.

[00:22:55] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That support circle is definitely very crucial. And ideally, people who can walk in your shoes rather than a broader support circle, which is also nice to have, but then they can't fully relate. I get that.

How can interested people reach out to you and learn more? And where can they find more information on Shine?

[00:23:16] Claire Hines: Let's talk about Emporium first of all we have a Facebook page and Instagram page. It's at Emporium underscore m33. , our brand new website, which we're super proud of emporium m33. com.

For my business Shine, I'm also on Instagram and Facebook. It's at shine. shop. mcr. And my website is www. shine shop. co. uk. And please feel free to send me a DM or whatever. I love to chat to people as you can probably tell.

[00:23:48] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Fabulous. I'll include both in my show notes that people can find it easily.

Heartwarming Stories and Conclusion

[00:23:54] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: Is there a funny or a heartwarming story you'd like to share with listeners

[00:23:57] Claire Hines: Why don't we talk about Andy? Let's talk about Andy and Mary. Andy and Mary are Sale residents and it's a sad story. Andy was hit by, I believe it's two buses. It was definitely one bus. I believe it's two, when he was 14 years old. And so he had quite a severe brain injury and this stops him from working, taking on the full time employment or whatever. but he absolutely loves to be helpful. And there's nothing he likes more than moving some furniture around. Or if I'm doing a window display, as soon as I start doing the window, Andy will pop up and be there. And he's so helpful.

And his mum comes in and shops with us as well. She's so lovely, Mary. I think we're always really welcoming to Andy and his mum because they have a tough time. They have a lot of challenges, but they love to have a chat and they'll do anything for you.

And we recently went to Mary's 80th birthday party. And I think this really shows that the friendships that we make through the shop. It isn't just a transaction, of customers coming in and taking the money. It's much more than that.

And we learn so much as well from people like Mary and Andy. If you come in the shop and sometimes he wears a t shirt that says security on the back because he likes to be security and he always watches out for everything. If you come in and you see a person with a cap on and security on the back, that'll be Andy. Please say hello to him because he'd love to have a chat with you.

[00:25:36] Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: That is really lovely, and I love that Mary had her 80th, so shout out to her as well, and shout out to Andy who's coming and spreading some cheer. Thank you so much for sharing that. It's a lovely note to end the podcast on.

It's been a pleasure, Claire. Thank you so much for sharing a little more about both your passion and lovely work that Emporium is trying to do.

[00:25:59] Claire Hines: You're so welcome. It's been such a pleasure. Thank you so much for having me. O

Outro

Claire, I really enjoyed learning about supporting shared space in the community today.

 Dear listener, thank you so much for listening to the 11th episode of the Meet the Mancunian Podcast Season 8.

Tune in every Tuesday for a new episode or log on to meetthemancunian. co. uk to listen to all the episodes and learn more about my podcasting story.

Next week, on Tuesday, 20 August 2024, I speak to Jay Acharya about supporting the community.

Thanks for joining me on the Meet the Mancunian podcast: social impact stories from Manchester. I hope today's conversation has sparked new ideas and inspired you to act in your community. A big thank you to my wonderful community for your continued support and valuable feedback. Your stories shape the very essence of my podcast, driving me forward with purpose.

I'm eager to hear your thoughts. Visit my website at meetthemancunian.co.uk to share your insights. Remember, this podcast is your platform too. Let's stay connected on social media. Find me @MeettheMancunian on Instagram and Facebook,@MancunianPod on X, and @MeettheMancunianPodcast on YouTube.

Together, we are more than just listeners, we are a vibrant community dedicated to making a difference in Manchester. Spread the love by sharing, commenting and engaging with my guests and me. Keep fostering connections and always remember, the power to change the world lies within each of us. Until next time.