The owner of a popular online gift shop has announced she is due to open her first ever in-person store in Ormskirk this August.
Local resident Michelle Henriksen, who has owned an online gifting company since 2014, will be opening “Personalised Gifts Ormskirk” to the public from 20 August 2022, and says the shop is expected to fill a much-needed gap in the market for made-to-order goodies in the town.
Selling hand-made jewellery, t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, aprons, chopping boards, metal signs, and much more – Michelle hand-makes or hand-prints every item in the store, and almost every single product can be personalised to include names, special messages, or dates.
With a passion for local businesses, crafting and gift-making, she says that her gifts will offer something different to the market in Lancashire this summer – and hopes it will also encourage more people to support local businesses, instead of large-scale online retailers.
“Right now, following the pandemic, it’s proving more important than ever that people support local,” says Michelle. “Equally, I believe in-person shops are becoming increasingly popular again – with more people wishing to purchase their gifts in-person, right away. One reason for this is definitely an increase in people who are focusing on sustainability and the impact of their carbon footprint. When ordering gifts from huge retailers online, it often comes with heaps of plastic packaging and the impact of constant deliveries isn’t exactly great for the environment – which I think people are starting to realise. But aside from that obvious point, people really just want to purchase items and gifts without the hassle of returns, incorrect deliveries and long waiting times.”
