Welcome!

Welcome to all of our customers, old and new. I hope you will find this Blog useful and informative. My aim is to talk about fashion - my love, and to share with you what's new and helpful in the complicated world of women's clothes.


We've had our shop for 7 years now and I've learnt so much in that time. My previous buying and retail experience was in Menswear - quite a different animal to womenswear! Like the men themselves, men's fashion was a delightfully straight forward affair. Even though I worked in men's "fashion" and bought the likes of Paul Smith, Diesel Jeans and Moschino, it was still easy. Men have 2 arms and 2 legs. There are a limited number of ways to clothe them: shirts, knits, trousers, jeans, suits. Yup, that's about it. And very grateful and well behaved they all were to be dressed at all.


Now women - there's another story! I hadn't realised until I started Therapy just how insecure we are about our bodies. Despite my own foibles and sensitivities, I still imagined that most women were simple...easy to please...like men. How wrong I was.


And I'm pleased I was wrong. Because for all the drama and hard work involved in dressing women, I love it. It is a constant challenge and a constant satisfaction to find the perfect outfit for each unique woman. Great.


So I'm hoping to develop a dialogue with you all. I have always strived to offer you what you want. I'm a retailer by training as much as a fashion buyer and I was taught that we wouldn't exist without our customers. True.


I don't subscribe to the attitude of many "up market" fashion retailers. Like poor Julia Roberts in the film "Pretty Woman", we're made to feel inferior by women who are paid to serve us - disgraceful. Don't ever tolerate bad service. If people work with the public then their job is to serve them with a smile and with a willingness to do their job well. If you can't do that then go work in a lighthouse.


So our little shop Therapy is so named because we wanted it to be an oasis of calm and a place to come for some fun. I know it doesn't sound like good business sense but I want customers to visit us without feeling obliged to buy. I'd rather you came and enjoyed looking around than felt that you couldn't enter because you weren't spending.


Isn't half the fun of shopping the looking? The imagining? The choosing? More than half I'd say. 


I like to think of the yummy things we sell in Therapy as "neccessary luxuries". This is a phrase I coined for myself when trying to justify to Chris why I needed to pay £12 a bottle for my favourite Artful Teasing body lotion. (Try it ladies, I have never in my life had such soft skin). Anyway, I wanted him to understand that £12 was a neccessity for such a result. I'd rather scrimp on holidays and have soft skin.


Do you know what I mean? We all have things personal to us that we don't want to live without. For me it's paper tissues in every room (allergies) and Chanel lipstick, Twinings Lady Grey teabags and cashmere jumpers.


What are your favourites?


Shall I tell you?


NYDJ and FDJ jeans. You know the ones - that pull your tummy in and give you a smooth line and feel like a second skin they're so comfortable. Once you've worn a pair it's hard to go back to normal jeans.


Or what about Part Two knits from Denmark? We sell loads so I know how much you love them! I have umpteen and they wear so well.


Ah, one of my favourites although I don't wear them: Echo scarves from New York. You love them too. I have never seen such beautiful and clever colour combinations & designs. I want to frame them!


Now La Badia pumps from Florence - these really are best sellers. I'm trying to get Francesco, the owner of this family run business, to make us lots in basic colours so that you can all have them. Cross your fingers that he agrees.


Rachel Lovett jewellery - wow. Rachel's another local girl based in Sussex. Like me she worked for some big names in the fashion world before settling down to produce her own collection. She has a beautiful, vintage way with her and her necklaces and bracelets look like heirlooms. How she manages all of this at such a good price I'll never know. But I'm grateful that she does!


Avoca. I can't say that word without smiling. I love Avoca. I know I love lots of things, but Avoca makes me smile. A married couple - architects or lawyers or something - looked at the old original Avoca Handloom Mills in Kilmacanogue, Eire. They were going to convert it to live in but fell so in love with the heritage and romance of the place that they decided instead to resurrect it. They apply a fun and positive slant to everything they do and use humour too. We stock their dresses, scarves, wellies, homewares - yummy.


Oui? Oui! I've been looking at Oui from Germany for years but only bought it for Therapy 3 seasons ago. I'm glad I did! Yes this collection is at the top end of our price range but I think it's great value for money. I have some of their printed knits & tops and I always feel like a million dollars in them.


I'm hoping to tell you all about our Spring collections and feature key looks and styles here on our Blog. Please feel free to ask any questions or tell us if you're looking for anything special. I'll ask our staff and make sure we give you as useful an answer as possible.


Looking forward to hearing from you all.
Laura x