Shutterly successful
Shutterly Fabulous celebrate ten years at the top of the shutter and blind market
What inspired you to start the company Shutterly Fabulous?
“We were looking for shutters for our own house and very few companies sold them. After spending time in the USA, we saw how popular shutters were. We believed the trend would happen in the UK and took the plunge.”
How quickly did it take off?
“It was pretty amazing to get a sale in our very first week. It doesn’t always work that way with advertising! Our very first ad was in Latest Homes. We got a call days later and a sale that very first week. The business grew steadily from that point. It certainly felt reassuring that people were looking for the product. Shutters were still an unknown product as a window covering.”
“Latest Homes has been a great platform. We started the business with a bag of samples, a £400 website and our ad in Latest Homes. After that call in the first week, I think we’ve advertised in nearly every issue since! Brighton & Hove is our home and our staff all live in the area. We want to be recognised as the ‘go to’ shutter company for the city. Latest Homes is picked up by everyone and our regular presence has been a key part of our strategy to be known as THE shutter company of Brighton & Hove.”
Do you believe in strong marketing, advertising and editorial?
“We had marketing experience from previous jobs but it’s very different when it’s your own business. We’ve spent large sums on campaigns that haven’t worked and small amounts that had fantastic results. We continually push our spend ideas to grow the company, without being ‘uncontrolled’. You need to think before you spend and ask if the advert or editorial is in the right place for your business and likely to bring a return.”
Does that need, to re-affirm your brand through a press presence, continue?
“Yes, 100 per cent. We advertise in key publications all the time. We know that our audience, while not buying shutters today, will have comfort through brand recognition when they do decide to purchase shutters. This and a focus on strong PR ensures our name is bubbling along both locally and nationally.”
The trend for shutters and blinds is strong, have you spotted new products?
“We are ‘shutter mad’ but we’re always looking around, making sure we keep abreast of the latest trends. Working exclusively with Kelly Hoppen and B&Q (via our sister company, The California Shutter Co) we regularly discuss new products. Shutters have a long way to go. People are moving away from whites and towards larger slat sizes. We’ve extended our range of colours to include greys and blacks as people see the stunning effects these can create. Curtain fabrics are rarely pure white therefore why should shutters be?”
Shutterly Fabulous has been a regular advertiser in Latest Homes for years.
You have two brands, the fully bespoke services of Shutterly Fabulous and The California Shutter and Blind Company, how does that work?
“When we started we received calls from other parts of the UK where we didn’t have coverage. Rather than turn people away, we started The California Shutter & Blind Company. People could order online, for DIY self installation. Customers measure their windows, order online and install themselves.
California Co is the UK’s leading online shutter retailer and the exclusive supplier of shutters to B&Q. We work hard to continually develop the product and our website to ensure customers find the measure, install and order process hassle free. We’ve just launched a new website with B&Q, www.diy.com/shutters which has innovative features to make ordering easy. Of course, there are customers who do not want to install themselves, that’s where Shutterly comes in. We design, we measure, we install – no hassle.”
Quality is high but installation must be key to a customer’s decision?
“Our whole ethos is about the package. Product quality, value for money and outstanding customer service. The marketplace has become a lot busier with many more shutter companies to choose from. Having our own manufacturing and directly employed staff, who we can train and share our ‘service first’ ethos, makes us stand out. Our number one source of business is recommendation, we never take that for granted. Two years ago we started an apprentice scheme to train our own Installation Technicians. It’s working very well, our customers can be safe in the knowledge that their shutters are being installed by a trained craftsman who cares.”
Supplying and fitting a quality product must be very satisfying, but with that quality level do you find that customers come to you just the once?
“Shutters do last a lifetime if you look after them – it could be assumed customers are a one off visit. But people move, extend and add shutters. Last week I got an email from one of our office team who had been out with our Installation team. The customer, Liz Gunn, said, ‘I was your first bay window customer 10 years ago.’ She has moved three times since then. We love that.”
Did you imagine that Shutterly Fabulous would grow as it has?
“We knew we would work extremely hard to make the business a success but never envisaged so much would have happened in 10 years. The changes at our manufacturing facility are fantastic. The team we now have in the UK and the US are superb and the investment we have made during a recession has helped us grow. We’re proud of where we are now. At this 10th birthday it’s made us think, ‘Wow – that’s been quite a Shutterly Fabulous 10 years – who knows what the next 10 years will hold!’”
From a simple start in Brighton and Hove you now have a nationwide business. Do you see it going even further afield, a global presence?
“I don’t know about global but I’m sure there’ll be additions to the group in the coming 10 years! We opened The Shutter Store in the USA in 2009 and that is going extremely well. We have partnerships in Holland and France and we’re working on a larger operation in the French market.”
You manufacture abroad, how does that affect prices and delivery times?
“When we launched in 2002, we manufactured in Canada. In 2005 we made the decision to partner with a Chinese manufacturer with whom we have worked exclusively ever since. We could not be cost effective if we manufactured in Europe. While price is a factor, quality is too.”
Have technological advancements changed what you do and how you do it?
“There’s been continual investment to speed up and improve production. Every product is custom made, a large proportion of that work being undertaken by skilled craftsmen and women. Our policy of employing our own staff is something that we believe in. It comes with challenges but it ensures consistent levels of service and the same customer experience.
As we expand we work hard to find the right people and bring them here for months of training at our Brighton HQ, before we ‘let them loose’. Jon, our team member covering the North West is a good example – he’s doing a great job, customers love the time he takes to get the job right. We know he’s doing things the ‘Shutterly’ way and that is crucial as we continue to grow. Being Brighton’s ‘hometeam’ shutter company, it’s important for us to work with local companies, growing together. From Sliced Creative in Shoreham who handle a lot of our marketing and online activity to retailers like Second Seed and One in the House, we work closely with other local businesses.”
Have you any advice about marketing and advertising for people starting up?
“Think carefully about your target customer and be seen in places where they would be. Consider each and every pound you spend very carefully and don’t get caught up by an advertising sales rep promising the world! Start small and you can always grow.”
California Shutter & Blind Co., 0845 123 5661 Shutterly Fabulous, 01273 427912
www.thecaliforniacompany.co.uk
www.shutterlyfabulous.com
