Anthea Gould and Ceri Slater have refurbished and expanded their popular independent children’s and ladies clothes and shoe shop – Toggs and Cloggs, in Newport – with women in mind.
The pair have devoted a new upstairs area to ladies’ clothes, footwear and accessories, creating a one-stop shop. The challenge of finding the right fitting children’s school shoes and the perfect stylish addition to the wardrobe, can now all be solved in one place.
Anthea and Ceri are inviting customers old and new, to visit the freshly made-over Toggs and Cloggs, in Newport, during an Open day and evening on Friday 10 October. Shoppers can bag a bargain with an extra 10% off that must-have top, as well as the school or weekend shoes for the youngsters, whilst enjoying a relaxing drink and a bite to eat.
It has been just six months since the entrepreneurs opened their second Toggs and Cloggs in Shrewsbury but the busy businesswomen are not deterred by another challenge. The Shrewsbury town centre shop, in Princess Street, opened in March and immediately made an impression with shoppers looking for children’s shoes and then discovering much more besides. The duo soon found a loyal following attracted to their constantly changing ladies-wear lines. Anthea and Ceri are also expanding their online shop, attracting shoppers from across the globe. Brands include; new ethical label Nomads, lifestyle clothing brand, Mistral and contemporary Italian fashion by N & Willow and Luella.
As well as keeping Anthea and Ceri on their toes, Toggs and Cloggs employs four members of staff in Newport and a further four in Shrewsbury. In the run-up to Christmas they envisage taking on additional help to deal with demand for fashion, shoes, jewellery, scarves and a brand new selection of children’s gifts.
Nine years ago, Anthea and Ceri could not have foreseen a future in fashion and footwear. Ceri was at home on the family farm bringing up a small daughter and son. Her friend, and now business partner Anthea, also had a daughter and son of similar ages, and was looking for a change from her previous career as a Purchasing Manager. With a shared love of traditional children’s fashion and footwear – including a soft spot for Start-Rite shoes – Anthea and Ceri decided that they should embark on a business together.
Nine years down the road, the journey has been an adventure and a success that they could never have imagined.
Ceri Slater commented on the Newport Toggs and Cloggs expansion: “We have now created a lovely environment for ladies to take time to browse, put together whole outfits or just purchase a new scarf or top. There is plenty of choice in sizes 8 to18 and an array of coordinating footwear and accessories. It’s a one-stop shop! We are very excited to be expanding our Newport store further to our success in Shrewsbury. We hope our customers love the new-look Toggs and Cloggs as much as we do.”
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