CHERISH
CHRISTENING AND BRIDAL SPECIALISTS
OWNER:
CON GIOUZEPPOS
MANAGERS:
KATHY PSOUCALAS AND ANGIE HATZIMOISIS
CATEGORY:
RETAIL
LOCATION:
AIRPORT WEST, MELBOURNE
BACKGROUND:
Cherish opened its doors in 2005. It’s a family-owned business managed by two sisters catering for Christening or naming ceremonies, weddings and other special occasions. The business grew out of the owner’s fascination for designing speciality gowns and imports products from overseas and Australian suppliers.
HOW IS THE DOWNTURN IN RETAIL AFFECTING YOU?
“People are a more prudent in what they are spending. We still get a lot of work. But people are just buying the necessities, that’s affected us slightly. We are still growing 35 per cent each year but the market has changed.
WHO ARE YOUR BIGGEST COMPETITORS?
“The two dollar shops. I don’t know how they manage to do it but they sell things a lot cheaper. They are probably the only competitor, due to the amount of shops they have but Cherish is a speciality shop – people like to see something new and different and I think they get that with Cherish.
HOW IS ONLINE SALES AFFECTING YOU?
“We do a bit of both. We deal with a lot of interstate customers who place orders on our website. Times are changing, social networking sites such as Facebook are taking over in regards to advertising businesses, so people are looking to see what other people are selling and try to market their product online.
PRODUCTS:
“Our product line consists of christening outfits, flower girl and page boy outfits, bonbonniere, traditional Christening presentation box, all wedding necessities and gold crosses which are imported from Greece.”
WHAT’S YOUR BEST SELLING PRODUCTS AND WHY?
“Bonbonniere – we have such a large variety and offer very competitive prices. Demand is very high and we also put them together beautifully so the customer doesn’t have to worry about a thing.”
FUTURE PLANS?
“We’re happy with the business as it is for now, but we’re hoping to bring in new services such as designing our own christening gowns and having someone make them exclusively for us.”
CONTACT:
Kathy Psoucalas
9338 9393
www.cherish.com.au
