We have launched our first e-commerce website, offering online high street retail with a distinctly local twist.
The new site – www.wearebs3.co.uk currently features online purchase and delivery services from a host of local businesses ranging from food and drink, groceries as well as toys, crafts and art.
Familiar faces from the Bedminster streets feature on the site including Five Acre Farm, Zero Green, Toyville, Upfest, Trylla, Flip Deli, Kask, VX Bristol, Glass Designs and Gallery, Bristol Garden Kitchen, Compuwave, Mon Pote and Independent Design Collective, with more to be added in the coming weeks. This all new local e-commerce site will serve as a vital service to the local public during lockdown and beyond with both click and collect and local delivery available.
The latest government advice indicates that lockdown measures may begin to be eased over the next two months. However, our local high street has never been so important. Simon Dicken, chair of the Bedminster BID explains:
“This is a very difficult period for the high street right now but we have seen a great return to shopping local in Bedminster with people exploring North, West and East Street, with new people discovering and buying from their community shops.
“To support this new trend we wanted to make it easier for shoppers to shop online at our local stores. We worked with a locally based team at Employtec who leant the BID their resources for a number of weeks to get this project off the ground. Now we’re ready to launch and hope to see many more of our businesses joining the platform over the coming weeks.”
Stacey Fordham from zero waste retailer Zero Green, which has moved all its E-commerce to the platform explains;
“Our online orders have obviously been vital to keep us in touch with our customers during this period and the support from the local people of Bedminster has been amazing during this time. The new site enables us to process orders and organise deliveries without the crippling cost of a commercial third party service. It also means that local people can shop in one place, supporting the high street, regardless of if they can visit us in store over the coming weeks and months.”
Phil Stevens of Employtec, who donated many hours to the project to enable the new digital platform comments;
“We approached the BID at the beginning of lockdown to see if there was something we could build to help the retailers in the area through this difficult time. We now have 13 businesses up and running with more joining the platform each week and hope to create a local ecosystem which supports the circular economy while also improving the quality produce we are able to access from the comfort of our homes in the area.”
To shop BS3 visit www.wearebs3.co.uk or any Bedminster BID retailers interested in joining the platform can email business@bedminster.org.uk for more information.