Online gift shop owner to open first retail store

Michelle Henriksen, owner of an online gift shop, will open her first retail store to fill a much-needed gap in the market.

Personalised Gifts Ormskirk will open to the public on August 20 and will sell hand-made jewellery, T shirts, hoodies, mugs, aprons, chopping boards, metal signs and much more.

Ms Henriksen hand-makes or hand-prints every item in store, and almost every product can be personalised to include names, special messages or dates. She uses a variety of decoration methods including dye sublimation printing and white toner printing.

Ms Henriksen said: “Right now, following the pandemic, it’s proving more important than ever that people support local. 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.

“For locals in Lancashire now, gone are the days of ordering last-minute gifts online, hoping to personalise them before realising there’s a long waiting time for deliveries and a hugely expensive additional cost with personalisation.

“With us at Personalised Gifts Ormskirk, locals can now simply pop into the shop, tell us what they need in person – and we’ll go to additional lengths to ensure they get exactly what they need. Whether it’s a personalised T shirt for a friend, a mug for your parents, or handmade jewellery for your girlfriend – we have something for everyone, and we can’t wait to see what our friendly locals will think of the new store opening.”