Pippa Rees, Sally Longden and Peter Cross

Stick and Ribbon, the fashion boutique based in Nottingham’s Flying Horse Walk, is one of just a handful of retailers across the UK offering excellent customer service, according to leading retail guru Peter Cross.

Mary Portas’s ‘right hand man’ has praised the Nottingham boutique for the way it looks after customers.

Stick & Ribbon, the new fashion boutique which recently opened in Flying Horse Walk, was one of just three UK stores selected by Peter to take part in a retail workshop at Pulse, Britain’s leading design-led lifestyle show for independent retailers.

Stick & Ribbon co-owners Pippa Rees and Sally Longden were at Pulse – and they both met up with Peter who praised them for creating a unique customer experience in these very difficult trading conditions.

Pippa said: “Peter is really well known in the retail industry and works closely with Mary Portas. He appeared on the television show about the launch of Mary’s new range.

“We were excited to have been recognised as one of only four retailers across the UK that Peter believes is offering the right service to the right people. During his keynote speech, Peter acknowledged that women have either become extremely savvy shoppers and will use the internet to do their research and find the best deals, or they lack confidence and find it difficult to cut through all the choice that is now available on the high street.

“He said that at Stick & Ribbon it was quite obvious that the aim was to help both these groups of shoppers by providing the savvy ladies with unique pieces that they won’t find in the high street chains, plus a relaxing and calming environment with real advice, for those ladies who have lost confidence in how to shop.

Pippa and Sally regularly visit Pulse to find new and exciting products for their boutique and when they heard that Peter Cross was looking for inspirational new shops around the UK, they knew they had something unique to offer.

“Although we have only be open for two months in the city centre, we have been running a private shopping and personal styling business for two years, over which time we have created a relaxing shopping experience for our customers by offering personal style advice at the point of purchase.,” says Pippa.

“Both Sally and I are qualified stylists and genuinely enjoy spending time with all our customers to make sure they get the right style of clothes for their body shape and their lifestyle.

“As well as offering image consultations in style and colour definition, we are constantly finding new ways to educate our customers in a fun and interesting way. We now host monthly Style Club events with expert speakers from the fashion industry and host regular fashion shows, both in-store and for other local organisations.”