Week One: A life of grime.

So we have now had the shop for a total of a week and I thought I’d update you on our progress…

The new shop is currently in a poor state but I know it has plenty of potential. It has no power and the plumbing is in such a poor state that we do not dare turn on the mains water. The good news is that we knew all this when we took it on and we are busy doing what we can to clean, fix and sand until power is returned and the builders and plumbers do their thing. Luckily below some of the serious grime that’s being removed the shop is a better condition than I had hoped, the window frames for example, which looked rotten are actually sound and will just need a little love, sanding and painting. Its no wonder it needs some love, it has been empty for around 4 years.

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Some of our Catherine Street neighbours have popped in and have made us feel very welcome. Less welcome are the phone calls from con-artists posing as ‘the meter registration board’. Please be aware that these people are scammers and may ask for the serial no.s of your meter, please do not give them out. Luckily I was busy the first time they called and after asking them to call back I had time to research these fraudsters. Apparently they are dubious brokers and sign you up to contracts that would make your eyes water and are difficult to get out of. Anyway no harm done and the calls seem to have finally stopped.

It feels good to spend time at the shop and to get to know the space and in doing so, my planned layout has changed a little this week. The shop will be similar in format to the Harpenden pop-up but better presented with lots more sets, minifigures and built items on display.

We are still preparing more stock and getting more of our inventory onto our Bricklink store plus fulfilling online orders, so its business as usual as well as preping the shop. Power will be on this week so hopefully progress will be fast from now on. Here’s hoping!