Art students’ venture marks half century of retail – and marriage!
When two young art students opened a tiny shop off a Nottingham alleyway, little did they realise they’d still be in the greeting card and gift retail business half a century later.
Geoff and Diz Williams were in their early 20s when they wed in 1973 and started the store with a few handmade cards, some Clarice Cliff pottery, and a sign proclaiming “purveyors of old pine furniture and antique goods”.
Having set up in Tokenhouse Yard, a couple of shop moves and 50 years later, The Tokenhouse has kept the link via its name and is now a fixture of the city’s St Peter’s Gate, and a stalwart greeting card retailer.
Although no longer spending any time on pine furniture restoration, Geoff reckons the product selection has been pretty stable since they discovered the Blackpool Gift Fair in 1976: “We had no money and no idea what we were doing when we started – we made it up as we went along.
“Fifty years ago, pine furniture was very trendy, while today people are painting those same pieces with Farrow & Ball paint!”
Admitting that tracking down stock was a bit of a challenge, trade fairs were a revelation: “It was great to find that we could go to an exhibition, source products and get them delivered, and it’s how we branched out into giftware, gradually phasing out pine furniture and fittings.”
Having moved from the 15sq ft shop to a bigger store on the High Street where the rent was £25 a week, Geoff and Diz began selling fine stationery, Filofaxes, and paper by weight, with gifts a natural progression alongside the expanded greeting card offer encompassing publishers such as Cinnamon Aitch, Five Dollar Shake, James Ellis, Caroline Gardner, Lagom, Hype, and local company Rachel Ellen Designs – and they also have a 99p postage deal for cards.
“We were early adopters of Emma Bridgewater and plush,” recalled Geoff. “And we still sell Emma Bridgewater – now including her card designs from Woodmansterne – and plush, although the gift range has broadened to include party decorations, home fragrancing, fashion jewellery, mugs, toys, games, homeware, gift books, and baby, christening and wedding gifts.
“We like to keep a balance, offering giftware for children, mothers and grandmothers, as well as the student population. We often have people coming in – with parents and grandparents! – who have been shopping with us over many years.”
Now in their third shop location in Nottingham, in St Peter’s Gate, Geoff and Diz’s daughter Holly is also very much a part of the business, joining her parents a decade ago.
Commenting on how retail has evolved over the past five decades, Geoff said: “Nothing is guaranteed any more so, as a business, we have to batten down the hatches and just carry on. I’d like to think that one day Holly will take over the business and continue to be very successful too.”
Meanwhile, the couple are loving celebrating The Tokenhouse’s 50th birthday and looking forward to their own golden wedding anniversary in September.
“As a business, it’s been a very enjoyable journey so far,” Geoff added. “We’ve weathered so many storms along the way and, fortunately, we’ve been able to fix them.”
