INTERVIEW with Romina Nicolò by TheFashionAttitude.it
We interviewed Romina Nicolò, the owner of a clothing store in Sesto San Giovanni , I LOVE SHOPPING which, after the difficulties of the first years, now sells throughout Italy thanks to Instagram . Romina is an enterprising and positive girl, who is passionate about her work and uses Instagram very intelligently to raise awareness of her business and to help other small traders in difficulty.
We at The Opinion Leader were fascinated by her energy and thought we would dedicate an interview to her.
- How did the idea for I love Shopping come about? Was it inspired by Sophia Kinsella's best seller or was it born from your personal passion?
“Yes, the name comes from Kinsella's books, I was 23 when I opened and my readings were certainly much lighter than today. Now I'm 38 years old and I've thought several times about changing, about finding something less obvious and banal, but now I'm fond of it and thinking about it the name is very appropriate, now whoever enters my shop always finds something among clothes and accessories. Even when you don't feel like buying you can't do without it, so "I love shopping" remains that way."
- Your shop model is very particular: you are well known on social media, especially on Instagram, but you don't have e-commerce by choice. Do you explain this decision?
” There are choices that must also be made based on one's professional philosophy, I won't deny that we tried but it's not for us: difficult to manage, too many products to load and brands with wearability that are impossible to propose without first explaining them or without seeing who will then see them will buy. We risked having a lot of returns.
We sell the same online and we have invented a format called #UNABITOSUBITO, a chat directly with customers who choose the garments from Instagram or Facebook. Customers write to us and trust us to send us their photos with measurements, empathy is immediately created, we evaluate everything before sending, even skin color and hair. We care a lot about it and even if it takes more time the satisfactions are undoubtedly greater. A real human relationship has now been established with many clients. An e-commerce will never be able to provide this.”
- Describe in three adjectives the spirit with which you face life in the shop every day.
“Lightness, lightness, lightness… three times because it is very important to remember that it is still about shopping, we do not operate with an open heart in AFRICA, but WE CAN GIVE SOME injections of self-esteem ON OFF DAYS. However, we must do it well and with all the professionalism we have, because my shop is this but it is also much more... Lightness that should never be confused with superficiality."
- “Specialize in little dresses”, I read in your Instagram bio. In fact, the models you propose are very refined and to my taste. How do you make the choice and do you have any reference brands?
“My choices are the result of my personal taste for research, sometimes it's simple, other times not, sometimes the inspiration comes from the heroine of some book or film and I don't rest until I find what I already have perfectly in mind. Furthermore, the support of my girls is fundamental, we are three generations compared, we all love colours, but they have that bolder attitude which is needed on some occasions. The only common thread is always colours, without ever falling into the temptation of "sexy at all costs", good taste first of all... at least I hope that's the case."
- You refer to the shop with the term "bottega" and the models are you and the customers: a very familiar spirit, which is currently your strong point. Aren't you afraid that by gaining visibility this stylistic signature will disappear?
“No, honestly, I don't have this fear because I am aware of the visibility we have but I am even more aware of the fact that, as a Spanish saying goes “todo lo que sube tener que caer” (everything that rises sooner or later goes out of fashion) everything goes out of fashion, we too will go out of fashion, there are many wonderful shops, very instagrammable, with added values such as their own productions or dream locations. When this positive wave passes, I will always have the support of my beloved province, made up of people who care relatively little about social media because they have seen us grow from the beginning... when we were just "the girls in the little shop near the house" these customers know who we are, who we are and the path we have taken, in the same way those who have come to us thanks to social media, by returning, have shown us that this very familiar environment is true and appreciated. That's why I'm not afraid.
Because what you say on social media must then be reflected in real life, otherwise it's just storytelling. Here we have history and smiles, whatever happens, we will photograph more."
- The choice to include a line dedicated to plus sizes, to also enhance girls who have a few extra kilos, without being less fascinating, does you honor. Does it arise from a specific customer request or is it your precise choice to intercept a larger share of the market?
“A dream I've wanted to realize for a while. I had a lot of trouble finding companies that weren't already on the big online platforms, the biggest problem has always been the budget, I was looking for something colorful in line with our prices, it took me a while but I got it done. When the line arrived in the shop, I placed an advert looking for a curvy model and a world opened up to me. It was hard to read messages like "your shop didn't offer self-esteem above size 46", "it's about time, I didn't come anymore because I fell in love with the clothes and I only came home with shoes or jewelry". I can't expect people to understand the difficulties, but I should have done this research much earlier, because the satisfaction it is giving us is so much."
by: FEDERICA LIVIO
FULL INTERVIEW ON TheFashionAttitude.it
LINK: https://www.thefashionattitude.it/i-love-shopping-interview-romina-nicolo/