{"id":205232,"date":"2026-05-26T12:48:22","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T11:48:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/?p=205232"},"modified":"2026-05-27T10:11:36","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T09:11:36","slug":"how-square-helped-chirpy-turn-first-time-visitors-into-devoted-regulars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/blog\/2026\/05\/how-square-helped-chirpy-turn-first-time-visitors-into-devoted-regulars\/","title":{"rendered":"How Square helped Chirpy turn first-time visitors into devoted regulars\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nestled in amongst quaint bookstores, quirky boutiques, independent cafes and toy stores in Leed\u2019s Chapel Allerton, Chirpy<\/a> is home to a carefully curated selection of gifts, cards, jewellery and local souvenirs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Having taken over the business just five weeks before Christmas 2016, owner Jo McBeth took a leap of faith in what she calls \u201cthe biggest impulse purchase of her whole life.\u201d Entering the world of running a business almost entirely alone was a huge undertaking, but with the help of Square\u2019s<\/a> POS system and loyalty tools, Jo has turned her small shop into a community hub for customers that come back time and time again.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A gift for all<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

From hand-made cards to jewellery ranges, children\u2019s toys, ceramics and candles, customers find themselves stepping through the doors of Chirpy when they want to purchase something special.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s one-of-a-kind items that are the true selling point of the business,\u201d says Jo. \u201cI tend not to get a lot of the same products. For example, we\u2019ll stock two or three candles, each at different price points. I choose items that are useful and practical \u2013 and beautiful at the same time! My motto is that I wouldn\u2019t sell anything that I wouldn\u2019t buy myself.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With community at the heart of her business, Jo sources cards, exclusively from independent brands and makers. Selling almost 9,500 cards a year, she describes them as \u201cthe bread and butter of the business.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Community at the heart <\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

For Jo, running her business solo means she has many roles to play, from manning the till, to stock purchasing, curating the store, and running social media accounts. But it\u2019s the relationship development that\u2019s her favourite role.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI take pride in knowing my customers that come into the shop; knowing their names, and what\u2019s going on in their lives. I try to make it a priority to get to know them and understand what they\u2019re looking for,\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just Chirpy that builds that community feeling, but the surrounding independent coffee shops, fruit stores, local bookshops and independent toy shops too. \u201cIt\u2019s very much the kind of place where people on a Saturday will come and shop along the street to get everything they need in one go.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a pattern reflected across the country. According to Square\u2019s recent <\/span>Local Economy Report<\/span><\/a>, four in five shoppers say their relationship with their favourite local business goes beyond transactional \u2013 they value being recognised, feeling a sense of belonging, and knowing the other person behind the counter.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Loyalty, in store and out<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

For Jo, meeting those expectations starts with keeping track of who her customers are and what keeps them coming back, and Square\u2019s loyalty programme has helped her do exactly that. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe started using the scheme to remember our customers\u2019 details, which was a big factor in building relationships,\u201d says Jo. \u201cThen about two years ago, I discovered there were so many other parts to the feature. We now send our customers vouchers for their birthdays and give them rewards on their anniversary of loyalty to the store via email. We can even send them a reminder that they have a reward to spend, and my customers find it very simple, smooth and quick.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Square Loyalty is also able to generate reports to summarise what has been spent each day and from which customer, as well as how many customers have entered the store \u2013 which is crucial for revealing the busiest times of the day.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The best part? It can be customised to fit every business, helping them grow in return. \u201cI\u2019ve witnessed a 25 per cent increase in spend from customers who have enrolled into the loyalty programme. It\u2019s a real gamechanger!\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Smooth selling every day<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Beyond loyalty, Square keeps the day-to-day running of Chirpy effortless. At a shop where 95 per cent of customers pay by card, Jo uses Square Stand – a simple tablet that puts a smarter spin on selling.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAll my customers need to do is tap the card reader, and it\u2019s as simple as that. Everything is done on an iPad \u2013 it\u2019s so easy and user friendly. My customers love that it\u2019s just really unfussy, and the fact they can get receipts sent straight to their phones or emails is a real hit.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe also have the Square app, so I could be serving someone at the same time as someone else in the shop, on different devices.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Planning for the future<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

That ease of use pays off in the long run, too. From helping to plan for busy periods like Valentine\u2019s Day, Mother\u2019s Day and Christmas, to tracking customers\u2019 purchasing behaviours, Square helps Jo ensure her business runs smoothly. It allows Jo to look back at sales, discover what\u2019s selling the most, and identify products that need restocking.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI use Square to help track how many cards I\u2019ve sold in the previous year, and in turn, this helps improve my stock management. It means I\u2019m never overbuying. The best piece of advice I\u2019ve ever received is to not carry too much stock, and Square is essential in keeping me on track.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf I compare the business now to when I first bought it, the growth is unmatched.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Want to grow like Chirpy?<\/span> For more information, visit Square.com<\/a><\/span><\/i>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette\u2018s free daily email newsletter<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nestled in amongst quaint bookstores, quirky boutiques, independent cafes and toy stores in Leed\u2019s Chapel Allerton, Chirpy is home to a carefully curated selection of gifts, cards, jewellery and local souvenirs.\u00a0 Having taken over the business just five weeks before Christmas 2016, owner Jo McBeth took a leap of faith in what she calls \u201cthe…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":850,"featured_media":205309,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[12247,2749],"tags":[59250,4748,9246],"class_list":["post-205232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-resources","category-technology","tag-chripy","tag-pos","tag-square"],"comment_count":0,"featured_video":false,"extra_images":false,"featured_youtube_video_url":"","featured_image_url":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Unknown-1-5.jpeg","thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Unknown-1-5-300x200.jpeg","views":"200","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205232","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/850"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205232"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205232\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":205313,"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205232\/revisions\/205313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/205309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.retailgazette.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}