The Power of Shopping Small – Conversations with Kelly

Beyond the usual passing trade of tourists and holiday-makers Blackpool has a core demographic for people looking to grab those sentimental keepsakes, trinkets and gifts before they venture home from their visit. Kelly and her father George set up Kel’Made as a bespoke gift store that specialises in customised trinkets, displays, homeware and more. Despite the ongoing struggles of the changing economic climate Kelly spoke about how adapting to the times and overcoming the hurdles is more important now than ever before.

“We started Kel’made as we felt that Blackpool was missing a true personalised goods hotspot, something different to your run-of-the-mill named cups and t-shirts you see on the promenade. Me and my dad had always had a good relationship and through experimenting we found that we started to really enjoy making things together, over time we expanded our range of equipment and offerings and then eventually joined Abingdon Street Market in Blackpool”

To many Blackpool is a place for nights out, party season, stag dos and crazy getaways, but for some residents Blackpool is a place of opportunity, a chance to reach previously unattainable goals and create something unique. “Blackpool played a huge part in how the business performs, because of the impulse buying crowds that the local tourism industry brings. It means we have a huge crowd of visitors that grab themselves a trinket on their visit to Blackpool. It's also made the industry much more accessible, having locations like ASM around.”

“The shop itself is the biggest achievement that has come from being in Blackpool, without Blackpool we wouldn't have the shop in Abingdon, we wouldn’t have our amazing regulars and definitely wouldn’t have the support from local independents that we are lucky enough to have today”

There has always been a running joke about growing up in Blackpool and how you can know everyone in the town simply by growing up here, despite a whopping 145,000 population (circa 2025) it does seem to have this “small-pond” effect as to where everyone seems to know each other.

“Growing up in Blackpool has meant that I know a lot of people, being in the industry for this length of time has also helped, it's really meant that I have a core base of regulars that have been using my services for years, some of which have gone on to become real friends, it’s beautiful that being in a small town and owning a business can result in you having your own little community, I love that part of owning a shop here”

A topic discussed heavily amongst independent retailers is the changing in the e-commerce space and things such as AI and Temu and just how much it has impacted the space since its creation, it has been more demanding than ever to keep up with these conglomerate businesses and battle their cheaper prices.

“Despite what people think I enjoy the challenge, I think you can adapt to the times, see what these businesses are doing, there's no personality to it, use what they don’t have to your advantage. Yes you may be able to get things at a cheaper rate but there's this sense ofcomradery with shopping small, you’re physically helping people afford to live, you’re supporting their dream, you’re buying their art, it’s actually a great thing when you look at it like that, I think we’ve got to look at being better than these rivals as opposed to feeling threatened by them, which I know is easier said than done”

Diversity more important than ever has a huge impact with businesses that sell/provide personalised keepsakes, whether it’s who they are, what they like or where they are it’s become a great offering for independent businesses to be able to cater to these differences, there is something for everyone everywhere.

“It’s massively important to diversify your retail offerings, not just in the sense of people that need additional support or have specific taste but also in the demographic of customers you’re serving, we get a lot of passing trade from holiday makers, I need to make sure I’m ahead of the curve creating things that are on the cusp of trending or things that I think people will enjoy, offering personalisation also means that any of our designs can have any appearance at any point upon request”

Kelly and George have been at Abingdon St Market for almost 2 years and have expressed they have no intention of going anywhere anytime soon “We want to expand, maybe a second location, more offerings, new machinery to increase our range, I honestly don’t know, the sky is the limit”

You can find Kel’Made inside Abingdon St Market, Wednesday - Sunday from 10am - 5pm.