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Stories of Resilience - Sherelle Fashions

Tenterfield

Sherelle Fashions is located on the New England Highway or Rousse Street in Tenterfield, only 20km south of the Queensland-New South Wales (NSW) border. Tenterfield’s population of just over 4,000 is just part of the market for this women’s boutique clothing and accessories store, with passing and visiting travellers, as well as nearby communities traditionally contributing heavily to the clientele. Drought, Bushfires and Covid-19 created major business challenges but owner Sheree Thrift was proactive, determined to continue providing for her customers and has a stronger business now, due to the innovation and resilience that saw her through the dark times.

“My mother are I have been in this business for over 36 years. We both work at it every day and Mum has not long ago turned 92. She comes in most afternoons and we are very lucky to still have her with us,” Ms Thrift said.

“Over those 36 years we’ve built up a following of people, who have found us and supported us over the years. They come back to us on their way to and from holidays or visiting family. We have a huge following from the coast, from Tweed Heads down to Port Macquarie. We have wonderful support from our locals as well,” she said.

 

The Community Faced Many Challenges

Reflecting back on the bushfires they suffered throughout the region, Ms Thrift recalled how they impacted the town of Tenterfield and praised the support of the local community.

“The disasters we’ve been through had a huge impact on the town. Those fires were absolutely horrendous. They started on 6th September 2019 and you know what, they were still burning in January. We were really lucky that we did not lose a lot more here. The Rural Fire Service (RFS), the donations and the way the town came together were amazing.”

 

"The disasters we've been through
had a huge impact on the town.
Those fires were absolutely horrendous."

 

The bushfire smoke had barely cleared before the next economic blow hit. “Covid has been tough. The toughest part of that was when we had to shut down for four or five weeks,” said Ms Thrift. “We were just about to go into our winter sale. So we had a lot of winter stock to clear and then bang, our doors were shut. At the same time, we had all of our new summer stock starting to roll in and of course we weren’t open, so that was all being delivered to my front door at home. Mum and I worked madly to price that stock, so that when we could open, we had everything ready to go.”

 

Finding a New Way to Connect

A retailer working from home was just the start of the resilient measures adopted by this enduring women’s fashion outlet. “We used a lot of social media at the time (of Covid),” Ms Thrift said. “As I was unpacking and preparing new stock, I would put something up on Facebook, saying this is in or that is in. Our customers were amazing and made the most of the interaction, saying ‘do you have that in my size?’ I would say yes, I can deliver it to your door or you can pick it up from my place and I’ll leave it outside the front door. It was a matter of doing whatever we had to in order to keep trading and social media had a massive impact.”

 

"Our customers were amazing
and made the most of the interaction
It was a matter of doing whatever we had to
in order to keep trading and social media
had a massive impact"

 

“We even provided exclusive access to the shop, opening for just one customer to ensure safety.”

“We were also sending parcels to Brisbane. Social media helped us to survive these dark times and now our markets are broader; Facebook goes a long way.”

 

"Social Media is hard but the time or money you spend
on Facebook, Instagram and so on does pay off"

 

“We were lucky to come through and we are doing quite nicely now but we work hard at our business, as do all local business people in our community.”

According to Ms Thrift, Sherelle Fashions would not have survived without all of the measures they undertook to keep selling to customers.

“My message to regional business people is that social media is hard but the time or money you spend on Facebook, Instagram and so on does payoff.”

Watch Sheree's Story

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