This month we wanted to highlight our museum shop! What better way to do so than to interview our shop manager and founder, Bev.
Tell us a little bit about the history of the shop, how long has the shop been open?
Bev: The idea of a shop began in 2018. Up until then there were only a few items for sale. Badges, a few books. I was approached late in 2018 to see if I was interested in creating some hand made items for the shop. I created Police related items from Cards, Bookmarks, Soft Toys and anything else I could think of. These were ready for the 2019 season.
During this year it became apparent that a shop was, indeed, a good idea to promote the museum and to create more income. Through help from 'Museum Development Yorkshire', who put me in contact with suppliers to create our own branded items and contacts for suppliers who would sell small quantities of police related items.
We were ready to have a great year in 2020, having sourced many more gifts and created a better shop display when COVID hit. This became a trying time but once we had managed to weather that storm the shop became very popular.
What type of items you sell at the shop?
Bev: I try to source as many Police/Victorian related items as possible with a few that are not. These items cover pocket money type gifts from Pens, Pencils, Bookmarks, Badges to the more expensive like Books, Soft Toys and dressing up items for children.
There are some handmade items in the shop, Could you tell us a little bit more about those?
Bev: I have always liked making things and will try any new craft that is out there.
When coming up with police related gifts my mind went into overdrive. I looked at anything and everything from bookmarks, cards, jewellery, crochet and knitted soft toys, book folding, keyrings, postcards, you name it I've tried to produce something.
What type of books do you sell in the shop?
Bev: We have a mixture of books covering the History of Policing, Bradford related crimes, Ghosts, Victorian life, Victorian Prisons, Horrible History books along with some children's informational books about Bradford, Victorian Life and some non police/history books for children.
What are your most popular items?
Bev: The most popular items are for children dressing up with Helmets, Handcuffs, Whistles, Torches, Truncheons, notebooks. Other items would include some of the bespoke items created by me e.g Handcuff keyrings, Earrings, Bookmarks and crochet Policeman Teddy.
What about the price range? Do you have items that children can buy with their pocket money?
Bev: The pricing starts at 50p for postcards, quite a few items like Bookmarks, Pencils and rubbers for £1.00 and for dressing up, Helmets, Torches etc are £3.00 - £6.00. We then have more expensive items up to £20.00 for a hand knitted Policeman and Stand.
What is your favourite part about the shop?
Bev: My favourite part of the shop is when I have to reorganise the displays to fill the gaps of items that sell fast. I also like the comments we get from customers who complement the amount of choice we have in the shop.
What makes you most proud of the shop?
Bev: The thing I am most proud of is that I have managed to create and source quite a large portfolio of items and other gifts that are Police related. If we had been a toy museum then we would have had no end of choices, but I think we have managed to come up with a lot of items and are forever on the lookout for more.
If you would like to visit our shop, we are open from 10am - 4pm on Friday and Saturday from March to November. If you have any questions about the items we have in stock, please do contact us!
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