What do you think - good idea?

[rewardgirl]

Hello lovely mums
I'm hoping you can help me here. I'm thinking of opening a new shop in SW London (Barnes village) that will centre on the concept of rewards - toys, etc. Will have a few jars of "old fashioned" sweets, plus more healthy bars and sweets, mainly fair trade / educational stuff plus some purely fun / pretty stuff.
Idea is that when a DS/DD has done something worth rewarding, they'll come down to the shop for their treat. Parents will be able to buy books of vouchers in small denominations which can be used solo for something small or saved up for something bigger.
ANY feedback or ideas would be much appreciated!! I'd also be interested in running a focus group (wine/tea and cakes will be on me of course!) locally next week if anyone's interested?

Sounds like a good idea but not sure of how the concept of 'rewarding good behaviour with sweets' will be taken by some.

I'm not sure you'll get a sustainable business just out of "rewards", and I think a lot of your target groups would be fairly anti food-as-reward anyway these days.

Have you thought about doing a bespoke party bag service? It strikes me that there could be a significant crossover with the sort of stock you're likely to have, and potentially you've got the right sort of demographic in SW London.

I am in Putney and could potentially be interested in a focus group given enough wine tea, although is half term next week so will probably have DS around.

Thanks to you both for your feedback - I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

Yes - the sweets issue has been quite contentious and certainly divided the audience. At the end of the day though, I think it will be nice to have access to some lovely traditional sweets in the village, and then people can CHOOSE whether to have them or not.

I've thought of doing party bags, but you have helped to cement this idea and I will be developing this further.

Professor - thanks for the offer - I'll keep you informed.... [whispers] (both wine and tea can be available)...