Here’s a short tale from one of our latest Totally Locally towns, Wymondham.
The organisers of Totally Locally Wymondham are based around Kett’s Books, a community bookshop run by volunteers in the historic market town of Wymondham, Norfolk.
No sooner had the group finished their first and very well received Fiver Fest, they started packing up books and taking the shop apart for some building work for various works that had been put off and also to fix a leak in their roof. It wasn’t going to be the ideal way to spend World Book Week!
So as disruptive as it was, they still made it out to four primary schools, and it also gave them a great opportunity to put what Totally Locally has taught them, into action. Rather than sit and wallow in the missed opportunity, the group headed across the street and had a chat with the owner of a local pub. He is a kind and kindred spirit, wanting to grow the community in the pub, and he was all too happy to create a nice corner in which to hold a pop-up bookshop during their normal shop opening hours!
They soon found that the spirit of collaboration worked beautifully, and was even fun, leading to lots of great chats with locals. Their loyal customers after turning up at the shop headed over the road to visit them in their new setting, stay for a drink and a chat. It’s a new mix, in a new setting, all of them in it together: bookshop and barpeople, sharing a conversation and discovering what some of them never knew was right in front of them. Likewise, regulars came in to find them there, and we’re able to talk about the bookshop with a whole new group of people.
Would they have had the cheek to ask, if we’d not just started Totally Locally? Maybe not! So the campaign is doing what it’s supposed to: straight off the back of Fiver Fest.. getting businesses working together and helping customers discover other local businesses. Wymondham was ready for the idea of shops helping each other out, and trying new things.