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Shop name: MOTI
Location: Bristol, Cardiff, Reading, Online
Owner: Amy Newton and Shaun Lancaster
Opened: 2007
Affiliation: STAG
Number of staff: 33
Speciality: Running, Triathlon
Not a lot of people know this about my business, but ….
The idea to create MOTI started as an off the cuff comment to my partner Amy to leave accountancy and combine her running passion with a new business. I eventually closed my marketing business to join her full time. We never thought retail would be so challenging, but we love it.
How is business at the moment?
We’re seeing a massive growth in two main areas, novice runners and triathlon. So many people are being lured into finding their inner athlete with mass participation races like Race For Life. The attraction of triathlon doesn’t look like it’s slowing down and we’re working with partners like Mizuno to educate the triathletes about run shoe choice.
What has been the greatest success for your business over the past 12 months?
As well as opening our third store in Reading, we’ve been building the foundations to make the business more of a professional retail organisation. This means better cohesive ranging and merchandising, stock control and promotions that add value to both the consumer and the bottom line.
What recent supplier initiative has been successful?
Our ‘value-add’ promotions normally double or triple the revenue from a specific brand. This year we’ve had fantastic success with brand promotions from Gore, Craft, Odlo, Salomon and Mizuno.
What will be the biggest challenge for your business over the next 12 months?
With running shoe prices rising above the rate of inflation, our challenge is to ensure that we have the right products to meet customer’s needs, within their budget. Running shoes are the one area we don’t want our customers to compromise on. We’ll be re-testing and evaluating our shoe range to pick out the best products at each price point.
