THE MAGIC OF SNOB - Part 1

Part 1: Before There Was a Brand

I've been reading about Mary Portas and her thoughts on the future of retail. Particularly how technology, AI and the ease with which businesses can now be created are changing the face of our high streets.

And something struck a chord.

Because starting a retail business and building something that people genuinely care about are two very different things.

These days, you can create a logo in minutes. Build a website in an afternoon. Generate beautiful images, write convincing marketing copy and launch a fashion brand without ever having met a customer.

In fact, you can create an entire brand before you've even curated a collection.

The name, the logo, the colours, the website, the social media presence. All beautifully packaged before anyone has really thought about what they're selling, who they're selling it to, or why those people might actually need it.

And that's quite extraordinary.

But can you manufacture the magic?

I'm not so sure.

Because when I started SNOB, I didn't start with a brand.

I started with a problem. And I knew it was a problem because I was living it.

A WOMAN LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO WEAR

Let me take you back to 2010.

I was online dating.

For the first time in about ten years, I was navigating the world of dating again. Except this time, everything was different.

My body was changing.

My lifestyle was different.

My budget was different.

And the dating world itself was certainly different!

Naturally, I did what most women would do. I went shopping.

I headed into the shops I'd have visited the first time around, expecting to find something that would make me look and feel fabulous.

Except nothing worked.

The clothes didn't suit my changing body. They didn't reflect my lifestyle. They didn't work with my budget.

And perhaps most importantly, they didn't reflect the woman I was now.

I wasn't the same woman I'd been ten years earlier.

But I still wanted to look good.

I still wanted to feel attractive.

I still wanted clothes that made me feel like me.

And standing in those shops, I realised something.

There must be thousands of women just like me.

Women whose bodies, budgets and lifestyles had changed, but whose desire to look fabulous certainly hadn't.

Women who didn't want to dress like their daughters, but had absolutely no intention of dressing like their mothers either.

And that was the beginning of SNOB.

Not a clever branding exercise.

Not a marketing strategy.

Not a beautifully designed logo looking for something to sell.

It was a genuine need.

I knew the women I wanted to reach because I was one of them.

I knew what they wanted because I wanted it too.

And I knew that if I could find the right clothes, at the right prices, and create an environment where women felt comfortable, understood and confident, there was something worth building.

The product came first. The people were always at the centre.

The brand came later.

And over the years, it's evolved naturally alongside the clothes, the service, the personalities, the atmosphere and all those wonderful, sometimes completely unexpected relationships.

That's how SNOB became SNOB.

Next time: How a market stall became something much bigger than a clothes shop.

This is Part 1 of The Magic of SNOB, our founder series celebrating 16 years of SNOB in Tiverton.

Come and see us in Tiverton

SNOB is on Gold Street, in the heart of Tiverton, Mid Devon. Many of our customers make a day of it, travelling from across Devon, Somerset, Cornwall, Bristol and South Wales.

Planning a visit? Our Tiverton Visitor Guide covers where to park, where to grab a coffee and the best spots for lunch. Can't make the trip? Shop the new season online.