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Move to New Premises – March 2008
Over the last ten days of February, we moved into our new premises. The turnout of people coming to help was fantastic and we succeeded in only having to shut for four days trading. It was a mammoth effort by all concerned, including an after-dark manoeuvre of the largest and heaviest shelving down the middle of North Berwick High Street, visiting relatives being roped in to help, a day spent in the musty basement doing a stock take, and some impressive DIY work completed in record time by volunteer Richard.
We opened on Monday, 3rd March and our ‘Grand Opening’ (on the first Saturday we were open) was a busy day, apart from the two hours when it rained solidly. Volunteers Richard and Sheena both provided some lovely treats made from Fairtrade ingredients which went down a storm, there were Fairtrade balloons and a prize draw to win a basket of goodies. It was a very sociable day with most of the volunteers and several of the members popping in to enjoy the new shop and the food.
Fairtrade Town Progress – February 2008
The showing of ‘Black Gold’ went well, with more than seventy people attending and a good list of signatures at the end of the evening. These supporters included an MSP, a town councillor and several other influential people. A further meeting of these interested supporters took place on 2nd April, and a steering group has been formed to take forward the Fairtrade Town campaign. Most criteria for the title have already been met, with several shops (as well as Earth Matters!) selling Fairtrade products, and the Seabird Centre serving Fairtrade tea and coffee in their café. We are delighted to report that the Westgate Gallery has also switched over to Fairtrade, and hopefully the publicity generated by the campaign will persuade others to follow suit.
The Fairtrade Town campaign group held their first event at the Slow Food Fair on Sunday 27th April, selling teas and coffees and promoting the idea of Fairtrade, and this went very well.
Plastic Bag Campaign Update – February 2008
To give you a brief update on the plastic bag campaign, the North Berwick shopping bag will be available on the high street soon, for a very reasonable £1.99. Good news is that Tesco has agreed to put their plastic bags under the counter and only give them to customers if they specifically request them. This is the first Tesco in the country to do this, so it’s quite a coup for the North Berwick business association, who negotiated this. However, plastic bags are not going to disappear from the town altogether. Several shops on the High Street will still distribute them, although the use of a reusable bag will be encouraged.
New Premises News – January 2008
We are all set to move premises at the end of February. The new shop is currently ‘Presence’, at 94 High Street. The rent, rates and bills will all be higher, of course, but hopefully the increased space will mean we can display more stock to better advantage. The larger shop also means that it should be more welcoming to customers. There is also a large basement where a lot of extra stock can be stored (no more running out of refills!) and a more comfortable working environment for the staff.
Fairtrade Town Status? – January 2008
To launch our campaign to make North Berwick a Fairtrade Town, and to coincide with Fairtrade Fortnight, we are joining forces with the Cinema Club and North Berwick High School to host the film, ‘Black Gold’. Highlighting the unfair trade rules that govern the coffee trade, ‘Black Gold’ is a provocative documentary that has had excellent reviews.
It will be shown on Wed. 27th February at 7.30pm in the High School. Tickets are free and you can get them from the shop. We will also be sending tickets to all organizations and clubs in North Berwick, inviting them to come along and join in the push for Fairtrade Town status.
Possible New Premises – October 2007
We may possibly be moving to a bigger shop at the end of February. While certain things look good – the size and position of the shop, the current rent, the timing – the sticking point is that there is a rent review due in March 2008. However, we are looking to negotiate with the landlord on this issue, and hopefully come to an agreement.
Bargain Stall – August 2007
On the 4th August, to coincide with this year’s Highland Games, we will again be holding a stall in the entrance to St. Andrew Blackadder. This year, as well as a range of fair-trade food, there will be lots of bargains on clothes and gifts. So come along and see what you can snap up! From 1pm to 6pm.
Greek night – June 2007
At the end of the summer term in 2007, Earth Matters’ volunteers and members met for a fun evening with lots of great Greek food. On a Friday night, the unassuming Butternut Café in North Berwick is transformed into Andreas’s Taverna, with Greek music, food, jollity and not to mention the Greek maitre d’, Andreas himself. By all accounts, everyone enjoyed the evening immensely, even if some were so full they could barely make it home!
Fourth Director – May 2007
At the Advisory Group Meeting in May 2007, Sheena was elected as a fourth Director of Earth Matters Ltd, to join Paul, Sheila and Ali, and help with the all important job of finding new premises. In the next six months, we will face some very tough decisions. It is all too clear to anyone who knows the shop, that we are rapidly outgrowing our current premises, and as our lease comes to an end in February 2007, we need to decide whether to stay or move. Both directions come with their own problems. Staying would probably mean taking on a higher rent and a longer lease, and would confine us to a small, uncomfortable shop for the foreseeable future. Moving, however, is obviously a risk, with much higher rents (which may or may not be covered by higher income) and, more worryingly, the possibility of being liable for any repairs to a new property. Most leases for shops that come available on the high street seem to put this liability squarely on the shoulders of the tenants, and there have been more than a few pricey roof problems in North Berwick. Without any real capital to fall back on if this should happen, we wouldn’t even be able to consider taking on such a lease. However, it is possible that even the lease for our current premises might change to put such liability on us (and the roof where we are is in need of expensive repair). Furthermore, there is not a lot coming available in the High Street at the moment – we will have to wait and see what happens over the next few months.
Now in Store
With the larger premises, we now have lots of new things in store, with more to come over the next couple of weeks. Along with all our usual stock, we now have duvet covers and throws, a wider range of fairtrade food, more varieties of Faith in Nature products, a new range of Silverchilli jewellery, a wider range of the wonderfully characterful Kenana Knitters toys, and Pants to Poverty pants. We have room for more clothes now, and so have a wider range both for adults and children, with plenty of Little Green Radicals’ t-shirts in as well as new Nomads summer stock. After several attempts, we have finally managed to get in a range of Ethletic trainers (now in two new colours as well as the traditional black and white). The rubber in the soles is FSC certified, as well as them being fairly-traded. Soon, though, they will also be made of organic cotton – this will, of course, put the price up a bit, so if you want the cheaper ones, get them while you can!
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