Beaufort & Blake is best known for its distinctly British take on modern men’s and womenswear, offering smart, considered clothing with a touch of heritage charm. After growing a loyal online following, the brand made the leap into physical retail by opening their first store in Wandsworth, London.

We spoke with founder, Ed Bonnar, about the realities of opening their first bricks-and-mortar location: what went right, what caught them off guard, and what they’d do differently next time. In Ed’s own words, here’s what the journey has looked like six months in.

Opening Week – and Exceeding Expectations

I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect when we opened the doors to our first store in November 2024, but we hit the ground running. On our very first day, we made over £2,300 in sales and that momentum held until Christmas. Then after a quiet Jan and Feb, sales picked up again and in the first six months, we turned over £96.5k, 12% above our budget. Saturdays have been our strongest day, as you’d expect, but surprisingly, Wednesdays really performed well over the summer.

Most footfall happens between midday and 3pm, which has been great for planning staff schedules. Has the store driven more online traffic? Possibly, but it’s tricky to measure – we’ve seen a strong brand presence overall, so it’s likely helping in indirect ways.

Understanding Our Customers – For Real

One of the biggest revelations has been just how valuable it is to engage with customers in person. Online, you get data – but in the store, you get real opinion and nuance. You hear what people really think about the fit, what colours they want more of, what’s missing. That sort of insight feeds back to our head office, helping both our product and marketing teams make smarter decisions.

“Customers often tell us they’d love more of the same pieces – just in different colours. That kind of feedback is gold.”

We’ve also seen that the store is pulling in a high proportion of first-time buyers. In fact, 60% of our in-store customers are new, compared to 49% online. That uplift in customer acquisition has been a big win, and it shows how physical retail can unlock new audiences that digital alone might miss.

And while it’s tricky to directly attribute social media growth to the store, our Instagram following has grown from 69.2k to 77.4k since launch, which represents a rise of nearly 12%. Being physically present has definitely helped reinforce the brand and build buzz.

Conversions, Returns, and Behavioural Differences

The in-store conversion rate is around 30%, compared to 2.6% online. That’s a massive difference, and it shows the value of letting people touch, feel, and try things on.

Interestingly, our average order value is actually higher online (£110 vs £99 in-store), but the return rate is far lower in-store, at just 6% compared to 26% online. That has a real operational benefit: returns forecasting is easier, and range planning becomes more accurate.

Margins, Merchandise, and Surprises

People assume in-store sales are more profitable because there’s no shipping, but in our case, it’s only marginally cheaper. Nice paper retail bags are oddly expensive!

We’ve also seen some fascinating shifts in buying behaviour. Menswear makes up 70% of our in-store sales, while it’s only 45% of our online business. That’s something we’re looking at closely.

Investment and Break-even Goals

We invested £60k to get the store up and running, and we originally planned for break-even at 2.5 years. But we’re now on track to hit it 6 months early.

We always saw the store as more than just a sales channel. It’s a branding tool, a customer acquisition channel, and a community touchpoint. So even if it had needed some online subsidy, we felt it was worth it.

Hiring Challenges

Staffing has been our biggest operational challenge. We hired a store manager through a recruiter, but it didn’t work out. They often turned up late, sometimes hungover, and even closed the store early without asking. We had to let them go after five months.

“In a small, boutique-style space where there’s usually just one person on shift, reliability is everything.”

Since replacing them, the difference has been night and day.

If I Did It Again…

There are definitely things I’d approach differently next time. The biggest one? Have the right people managing each part of the project. Get creatives to handle design, logistics people to do logistics, and property pros to manage the lease and fit-out. Trying to juggle it all yourself is a mistake.

I’d also build in at least a month of buffer time for the fit-out, as delays are inevitable. If you can afford it, let your builders source the fittings themselves; that way they take on the responsibility if things go wrong.

We also learned a few small but important lessons:

• We opened with late trading hours (until 7pm), but found we could close at 6:30pm without losing any sales.
• Surprisingly, summer weekdays performed well, especially Wednesdays, so we’re now considering opening on Tuesdays, too.
• Don’t underestimate local PR. Building relationships in the community goes a long way.

My One Piece of Advice

If you’re thinking of opening your first store, here’s what I’ll say:
Have a good plan and plenty of creative ideas for eye-catching window displays. They’re one of your biggest opportunities to get your premises noticed and passing footfall into your shop.

Thinking of Opening a Store?

Opening a physical store has been one of the most rewarding and educational decisions we’ve made. It’s changed how we think, how we sell, and how we connect with customers. It’s been transformative for our business. If you’re thinking about launching a store of your own, I’d recommend speaking to the team at Hatch Retail. They help start-ups, scaleups, and online brands take the leap into physical retail by supporting everything from property search to lease negotiations, as well as connecting us with a solicitor. For us, it made all the difference.