From barn doors to bench seats, candles to cookware, the new Red Barn store in Margaret River’s Town Square is an eclectic mix of furnishings and homewares carefully curated by local Kristy Travers and husband Jeremy.
The couple settled on the plan to open Red Barn after Jeremy’s creativity with natural timbers and upcycled materials needed a place to shine.
“We’ve been in Margaret River for 10 years and Jez has been creating for around 20 years,” Kristy said.
“He was putting a lot of his works in the Yallingup Gallery, and we decided to bring some more affordable furniture to local people so that they can take home a nice piece of furniture at a price point people can work with.”
Accepting that not many people have the ability to spend between $10,000 and $15,000 on a dining table, the pair saw an opportunity to showcase his work to a wider audience.
While Jeremy works tirelessly in his workshop close by, Kristy oversees the new store, which she says was a daunting task after many years in the real estate industry.
“We’ve always been in sales and business but this is the first time we’ve branched out into retail,” said Kristy.
“I don’t mark up much on prices, margins are quite tight, so I’m at that point where I’m not 100 per cent sure if I’m doing any justice to myself, so that’s probably the most nervous thing.
“But at the same time we wanted that repeat business and for people to come back to us, and we’re finding that’s really working for us.
“We give the 10 per cent discount to locals, we do free delivery, so it’s like if we get that turnover and people to come back to us.”
Ms Travers said harnessing social media has been invaluable to the business, with a strong presence on Facebook and Instagram and campaigns such as ‘My Place’, where customers share photos of their Red Barn purchases in their own homes.
“I think if you’re fair and you price your items accordingly, you can still keep that customer base and keep people happy… people are very savvy these days.
“I’m not too concerned about online [retailers competing with local business] because I don’t tend to stock items you can get online, or they are pieces that people aren’t wanting to pay the shipping on.”
“My background is promoting myself, and now promoting Jez, so Jez is busy because I’ve been a bit of a maniac.”
With four children and a two year old grandchild, starting a new retail business has resulted in long days for the duo.
“Jez is flat out, because we don’t say no to anything… at all. If you want something small, or something big… we just say yes.”
“We don’t see each other much at the moment, he leaves at 5am and is home at 7pm, but I’m really really happy with how it’s all going and this has been a great change.
“Now it’s getting a bit hectic towards Christmas and we’re having to say to our customers that if they do want something unusual to start talking to us now.
“People bring in these amazing ideas, so it’s sort of working both ways, we’re getting inspired too by what our clients are showing us.”
Timbers are sourced from the South West, with other reclaimed materials coming from places of historical significance.
“This stuff here is from the old hospital, we’ve just found an old church in Bunbury we’re about to buy all the bits out of.”
Alongside Jeremy’s handcrafted furniture and homewares, Red Barn carries a range of locally produced giftware as well as soft furnishings, art, glassware, toys and homewares gathered from around the globe.
“The La Chamba cookware sells so well, you can run over it – it’s amazing stuff. Open fire, gas, oven, microwave, you can’t chip it. It’s all handmade in Colombia, it’s super popular.
“All I try to do is pick stuff that’s unusual, and things that you can’t find in stores around here, it’s about having a selection different to what else is out there.”
Red Barn Margaret River is located in Town Square on Bussell Highway. For more information visit www.facebook.com/pg/redbarnmargaretriver or redbarnmr.com