Atlanta stores create intimate shopping experiences despite pandemic

In these uncertain times, there are few givens. One is that, pandemic or not, children’s feet will keep on growing. And that is exactly what Stephanie Teichner is counting on to keep her Buckhead children’s shoe shop, Sprong, in business.

“I’m not into e-commerce. I want people in my store. I want people to come in, experience it. I want to measure the kids’ feet,” she says. “It’s hard. But, children’s shoes are essential. Children’s feet grow so we’re going to work it out. We’re doing the best we can.”

Teichner, like retailers throughout Atlanta and the country, are coming up with creative and practical solutions to connect with customers and make sales. Whether it’s upping social media, special offers, providing above-and-beyond customer services or creating new needed products, Atlanta retailers are not abandoning their customers and they hope that it will be a reciprocal relationship.

Connecting with Customers

Kelley Knight is the owner of Modern Mystic Shop, selling tools for the spiritual seeker such as crystals, ritual tools and self-care products. She’s trying not to “get into a chaos mode. You can only plan so far, take the next step and hope for the best.”

One of Knight’s business partners in North Georgia who makes her essential oils quickly churned out natural hand sanitizers and anti-bacterial soap. “That was our first major change. We were able to quickly pivot to sell that online. They’re 60% alcohol and orders started flooding in. In fact, we had record sales the first day we were closed.”

Store regulars bought several bottles and sent them to friends, gaining Knight new customers. The sudden rush of orders, however, created logistic problems for the Ponce City Market retailer. “We had a rocky start in handling all the orders,” Knight says. “Now we’re good to go. We’ve streamlined our products and we’re shipping most often the next day. It’s been pretty steady.”

Although she can’t access her store, she is selling products from her warehouse such as bath products, candles and jewelry. In addition, she offers online Sunday morning metaphysical podcasts as well as online tarot card readings. She also puts out a newsletter once or twice a week promoting the products, podcasts and generally trying to educate and engage with customers.

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Like Teichner, Jonathan Brimer, co-owner and co-founder of Select Shades, counts on in-store traffic rather than online sales. Heading into the busy summer months, Brimer is finding ways to connect with customers. For instance, on the website is an offer to purchase a gift card for an essential worker; the store will add $25. Brimer doesn’t check if the gift card actually goes to a worker or someone trying to score a good deal. “We’re trusting people and there’s no really good way to verify it,” he says. “We’re trying to make it as uncomplicated as possible.”

Select Shades, which has five locations in three states including The Battery, Inman Park and Commerce, hopes to come out of the shutdown stronger. “This has forced us to really think creatively on how to grow our followers,” he says. His newsletters are more graphically oriented now and aim at social interaction. “Everything we’re learning now will follow through when we come out of this. We’re not really pushing sales but we want more to get people to interact with us and take an interest in small businesses. We’re telling the story about the small lines we carry.”

Laura Goddard, who owns Laura Goddard Salon in Grant Park, has turned her beauty salon into a makeshift retail operation. Her suppliers send her shampoos, brushes and other beauty products and she sells them curbside to customers who pre-pay. She also started doing online videos on cutting bangs or wearing scarves. “I don’t want to give away my secrets but it’s the best I can do. I’m not comfortable doing these videos, but I gotta do what I got to do.”

Sales and Community

Ashley Collins, owner of Frolic, a Buckhead women’s clothing boutique, takes orders online and offers curbside pickup. “I’m not getting a lot but I am letting them pick up, take the clothes home and then decide what they want. It’s on approval. They don’t pay until they decide what they’re going to keep. It’s been challenging.”

Collins is concentrating on the community and wants to lift spirits and give back. “I’m asking customers to nominate a loved one on the front lines and I’d like to give them something. I want to do what I can to be positive and help someone. It’s truly from my heart; I’m not expecting this to get me business.”

Phil Sanders owns Citizen Supply, which sells more than 6,000 products including household goods, toiletries and clothing. He had planned for a more gradual closing. “It was so rapid fire,” he says. “It went from preparing to DEFCON in a day.”

He’s implementing a 50-50 approach: 50% connecting with the community, the other half is sales. “We talk about our vendors because they’re small businesses with interesting stories. If we can talk about them, it will show that we’re fighting for them too.”

Sanders also ships products out of a warehouse and the store. “It’s 12,000 feet so three people can get into the store safely and take out product,” he says, but he’s not doing any curbside or personal deliveries. “We want to play it safe.”

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He, like many other retailers, is increasing his media presence. His general manager Devan Knobloch puts on an Instagram Live show at 5 p.m. daily on making classic cocktails. “Our traffic on that — it’s called Quarantini Time — has seen a 30% increase, maybe more,” he says. The show has a digital tip jar to assist Citizen Supply’s workers.

Unlike those wanting to grow their social media presence and not worry (totally) about sales, Teichner is keeping in close contact with customers and is ready to sell a pair of shoes or two. “I’m lucky that we have a system that tracks customers and their history. So I can look at that and tell a customer what size their child would probably need. I’ve even had customers send a picture of their kids’ feet.”

She is trying to do “everything possible except having them walk into the store.” She’s even left a few pairs curbside and customers drive by and park while the children try on the shoes. Like some other retailers, she’s not holding customers to the usual return policies.

Unlike some mom-and-pop shops, Dress Up has a strong online presence, with about half-million followers. The fashion retailer’s stores — 19 in the Southeast, including 14 in Georgia — are closed but they’re still shipping from their Gainesville warehouse.

“Every single manager is posting on social media saying ‘We can’t wait to see you’,” says CEO Derrick Case. “They are writing notes to customers. Some of those managers are going into the stores to process orders from the website.”

Customers are responding. “If all our customers buy one thing, we’ll be fine. We’re just trying not to lose,” he says. “We’re hoping that even though someone can’t buy something new to wear out now, they’ll buy it and be ready for when they can.”

The store is also taking a different approach to social media now, according to Hillary Harper Etienne, director of marketing. “We making it less about the product and more about a full lifestyle story for our customers.”

For instance, they did an online tutorial on styling hair and make-up. They’ve asked customers to send pictures of the tops they’re wearing during Zoom meetings. “This is a way to build relationships in a refreshing way,” she says.

Looking for a bright light, each retailer hopes the close-down will result in a new appreciation for small businesses. “My hope is that we’ve developed strong enough relationships that we’re an essential part of their life and community,” Modern Mystic’s Knight says. “When people are ready and able to get out of the house, I hope they’ll come in record numbers and really focus more than ever before on who makes the products as well as supporting local businesses.”

Modern Mystic

675 Ponce de Leon Ave NE, Atlanta. 404-600-2939, modernmysticshop.com.

Select Shades

678-314-1104, www.select-shades.com.

Citizen Supply

675 Ponce de Leon Ave. NW, Atlanta. 678-705-9145, citizensupply.com, phil@citizensupply.

Sprong

3716 Roswell Road, Atlanta. 404-846-8506, sprongshoes.com.

Dress Up

Various locations, 678-989-2006, shopdressup.com.

Laura Goddard Style

332 Ormond St., Unit 104, Atlanta. 770-547-2444, lauragoddardstyle.com.