Just Williams - lovely but why so expensive!

[ninbi]

It's lovely to have a local toyshop that the children can go to and spend their pocket money, but so much that they sell can be found cheaper elsewhere. Grandma found a toy ?22 cheaper elsewhere earlier this year and yesterday I found that the Sylvanian Families Ambulance being sold for ?44 in Just Williams is ?27 in Argos. I would rather our money go to support a vibrant local shop, but it's hard when the prices differ so much!

[Saffron]

There is also a lovely toy shop in Brockley, which doesn't have quite the price mark up as LL. It's called Gently Elephant, near Brockley Cross, just east of Telegraph Hill. It's a shoe shop, but they also sell toys. xx

[Curmudgeon]

It costs more because its in east dulwich and they can get away with it (although so can the landlords with the rental cost you will hear them cry) have you never noticed there's a premium price on everything here

[esme]

I agree it's pricey but a lovely shop :) I generally get smaller toys here or things I want very soon - usually present shopping in a hurry! Not everything costs more so you generally have to just take care, e.g. a fab paddling pool last summer was ?8 (they had a bigger better version but I thought that was a bargain and on a par with somewhere like Argos or Toys R Us).

[VALFR59]

I do understand the reason why they have to sell the toys with a higher price :

- They pay an high tenancy

- They can't buy in huge amount of units to have big bargains like Argos/toys&rus/Smyths etc, can obtain easily by putting under pressure the suppliers (I know a bit of their business methods).

I don't buy all the toys in that shop,especially not the big toys/playmobile etc because as you , I prefer to pay the lower price, and I don't mind to have big stores instead of local shops close to me(but very personnal ). However I like it because it's a nice atmoshpere,good advices and they do have items (like foam swords etc) & gadgets toys you can't find in the big store like Toy's rus, for few quids . My son love to explore the shop and he is very happy with a 2? gadget he discovers among the boxes like treasures.

It's ok for me to drive in bigger places if I want items with affordable price.(but I am lucky to have a car). I am not a Lordshiplane addict and I prefer to find good deal at Tk Maxx in Brixton (10min from WD with Bus n?3 if you can't drive), or I like to go in "WHAT" store, in Crystal palace (close to Homebase) where you can find cheap big toys for 3? and stickers books for 1?, art craft for 2/3? max, with a lot of our kids favourite characters.. ok it's not the nicest place to shop but it's efficient when you organise a playtime with your children friends at home for example.

I really don't think "Just Williams" shops overpriced their items because it's ED or Herne hill clients....we are not West londoners level...YET :) !

ok for SE londonners, Dulwich/Herne hill are posh but I am always amused when I speak with people at work/ or with my husband professionnal network over business/social dinners (the worst are those with French chamber of commerce or french ambassy with all the South kens unreals expats!lol), how THE OTHERS (from the other side of the river) look at us with pity when we say we live in SE london... some of them know a bit Dulwich village but if you tell them you live WD/ED ....close to Peckham/west norwood/gipsy hill etc..they look so surprise when we told them it's a nice quite safe place to live, with not so bad access in central london (but we are now in WD, much more convenient to connect in central london than north Dulwich where we were previously).

it's only 2 yrs and a half we live in London/dulwich and I agree it's more and more expensive, but it's also for the pleasure of owners who can see their properties going up every year and can make easy money for the future (or bigger house in Beckhenam :) as a big part of ED seem to move there, some of my best friends first!lol )

Personnally, I find London very expensive, more than a lot of others Europeans Cities we lived previously .... wherever you stay in London...but it's my favourite so far!! I even don't miss France.

Best wishes at Just Williams to stay open then!! perhaps they have to be careful to offer others ranges of toys than all those you have in the big toys stores/unique items/orignals suppliers to stay valuable for their clients...

[Scruffy Mummy]

I agree with VAL above - I think the big chains can get things much cheaper from suppliers as they buy in bulk and the small independents can't because they just don't have the negiotating power. I do like the range in Just William - again my son can buy lots of Pocket Money items for ?2 or under. I also find it totally invaluable for birthday presents for other kids particuarly as I am chronically disorganised and always leave it to the date of the party to get something. There is always something I can get under ?10.00 and they sell wrapping paper/gift bags so hey presto, birthday presents sorted!

I remember someone on here asking where they can buy a micro scooter here urgently as they needed to get one for their son's birthday the next day and Just William was recommended.

The problem with the rents and landlords on LL can't be under-estimated. Soup Dragon which had been a popular shop for ages on LL went under because of a problem with the landlord and the lease. The clothes they sold were alittle pricey for me but I often bought a few items in the sale now and again & again they had a nice range of toys too - including pocket money toys. So I was sad to see them go - particuarly as they had a great community noticeboard and I could always count on seeing someone I knew and I could chat to while browsing.

Basically, toys are 'non essential items of expenditure' in our household and so we don't spend tons of money on new toys for my sprog (even at x-mas, mini scruff gets a max three presents from us, a stocking full of stocking fillers from Santa and then a few from grandparents overseas)_. HOWEVER, I don't mind spending abit more from a local shop when we do buy because without a car, I would hate the inconvience of trucking off to a big shop.

[tomskip]

It is symptomatic of the sort of area we live in. I don't blame the owners for one moment - enough businesses have gone under in ED recently - but you either live in a poncey area with poncey shop prices or you live somewhere cheaper with chain stores.

[mima08]

I am not sure that they are always much more expensive in all things? Having looked for things a number of times, I found the differences (on those occasions) within ?5 or so... my comparisons have mainly been with toys on amazon, and yes, of course, for the large items, it can be worth it to shop around but I don't think its fair to call Just William's prices "poncy shop prices".

[Carbonara]

Thhings in ED will be so much cheaper once there is an Argos, Primark and Lidl in Lordship Lane. And surely one of those cafes serving very expensive home made cakes could become a McD?

[mrs.lotte]

We are in that shop at least twice a week, not always buying often just browsing. I have always been able to find reasonably priced birthday presents and treats. I am suprised at the mark ups mentioned by the original poster but anticipate that a. it is not symptomatic of the % mark up on every item and b. similar to most shops eg big supermarkets will have an offer on one item but a mark up on another, they make the same profit overall, you go away feeling chuffed.

Personally I find Argos not terribly convenient and pretty bewildering and am trying to break an Amazon habit (there is a reason why it's cheaper, cant have cake and eat it).

No one is forced to shop in JW but it is always busy, I dont believe that it is because people are "poncey" but due to a combination of great customer service (in my experience), a really broad, eclectic range of stock, convenience, community spirit (from the shop and its customers) and that plenty of items are reasonably priced.

Long live JW!

[Coach Beth]

Agreed with Mrs. Lotte.

[lucyA1308]

Val, where is the What store, it sounds fun. Just the sort of place my kids would love. A nice morning trip to the shop, come back home and spend the afternoon being creative. The only Homebase I know in Crystal Palace is the one at the Penge end of the park. Is the What store by there? if so, hooray. If not, please can you let me know. Thanks,

Lucy

[Jessie]

Spot on Mrs Lotte

[Otta]

They are in an area where people will pay the prices, so they'll keep charging them.

A former shop owner in the area once said to me "I make money selling stuoid cushions to bored women with too much money". Harsh, but she was proved right.

[hellosailor]

Otta Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

>

> A former shop owner in the area once said to me "I

> make money selling stuoid cushions to bored women

> with too much money".

think that statement says rather more about her life than her customers! Not what I'd aspire to have written on my headstone, put it that way.

[LondonMix]

Proved right about what? Did she say she could raise prices without losing customers or something?

Otta Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> They are in an area where people will pay the

> prices, so they'll keep charging them.

>

> A former shop owner in the area once said to me "I

> make money selling stuoid cushions to bored women

> with too much money". Harsh, but she was proved

> right.

[Jessie]

I really don't think JW is that expensive, or for 'bored women with too much money'. I wish I had the time to be bored, and I wish I had too much money! Alas not. It's a lovely shop, with lovely staff and last time we were in there my son spent 50p on a pocket money toy.

[Lou]

I also don't think it is overpriced! I have often found things might be 50p or a ?1 more. But willing to pay to have such a lovely shop with such lovely staff.

[Otta]

I wasn't suggesting that people using JW were bored women with too much money (you have to love the family room!). My point was simply that in an area like ED, small businesses will charge what people will pay. If people stop using their shop, they'll drop prices or go out of business. The OP even says how lovely it is, and that her kids spend their pocket money in there, which just goes to show that even if someone thinks the place is a bit pricey, they are still spending money in there.

hellosailor Wrote:

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> think that statement says rather more about her life than her customers! Not what I'd aspire to have written on my headstone, put it that way.

She's a lovely woman, and very popular around here, but she was being honest. To be fair, I may have been paraphrasing, this was some years ago over a beer.

LondonMix Wrote:

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> Proved right about what? Did she say she could raise prices without losing customers or something?

Proved right that in an area like ED, you can charfge top dollar, and people will still come and buy stuff. I don't see how anyone can deny that. And fair play to anyone who does use these shops, if you have the cash, and want to support local business people, then great, I'm not judging. I just look for the cheapest price (usually on line) and go there.

[LondonMix]

I?ve never understood that whole too much money and bored thing. I don?t see that the two have any link. I can?t imagine how you could be bored without any financial constraints on what you could do.

[Otta]

I guess they're not bored because they have the money to buy cushions. But even with all the money in the world I'm sure you'd get bored for other reasons... Lonliness for example.

[LondonMix]

Oh, I get that people can be bored. I just don't get why people link bored with having money so often. I can't see that the two things ever have anything to do with each other.

[Otta]

I don't think anyone is suggesting a link between boredom and having money.

Tge point is that people who are bored AND have money to burn will go and spend it for something to do.

Anyway, getting way off topic.