dear customer...

please allow me a few minutes to talk to you.

even if you are not a customer of my shop, you are still a customer somewhere, so this is for you too..

i know that you come to my shop, and you see the same stock all the time. i know that there are empty gaps on the shelves that take a long time to be filled. i know that there are items that you want, that i have not stocked in months.

i know that. in fact, i am painfully aware of it.

i also know that you are getting frustrated, and bored, and are popping in less often, and shopping elsewhere. i know that you are complaining to your friends. i know that you are not coming back.

but please understand.

i know that you have much less money to spend in my shop. i know that you are leaving your credit card at home, and that your income is not going very far anymore. i know that your bond and groceries and school fees have to be paid before you can spend money here. i know that you are scrapbooking less, and using your stash, and simplifying your layouts because you have to stick to a smaller budget.

i know that. in fact, i'm painfully aware of it.

but, please understand. the same applies to me.

if you spend less, i make less. if you don't pop in, my sales drop. if you stay away, my income is less.

i am not saying that it is your responsibility to spend money in my shop. i'm not implying that it is your fault. i'm not thinking that it is your job to help me out. not at all!

all i'm asking is for is your understanding. and some patience.

please remember that my rent and telephone bill and bank fees also have to be paid before i can buy stock. you have to know that i am working harder and longer, and stressing more, because i too have to stick to a smaller budget.

so, please understand.

i have to admit that if i could just close my doors today, and walk away, i would. because spending time with my family, and having a little time for myself, and being home, would be so much less stressful at this time. but i have a long time left on my lease, and a landlord who does not compromise.

so, please understand.

i am still here. and, unless things get even worse, i will still be here for a while. besides, what else would i do? and when things get better, and they will, i will be ready, and open, and trading, and buying stock, when so many other businesses went away.

so, dear customer, let's make a deal: i will understand your posistion, and you will understand mine. i will respect your need to save money, and you will know that that filling my shelves is a challenge.

i will empathise with you, and you will be patient with me. we will support each other, and help each other, and be honest with each other.

and we will drink no-name brand tea and eat cheaper biscuits, and create layouts that cost less. we will use our stash, and finish projects before we start new ones, and use more creativity and fewer products, and we will not complain and be negative.

well, maybe a little. sometimes. for a little while...

thanks

jacki janse van rensburg - SCRAPPIN TIMES scrapbook shop, benoni, gauteng, south africa