Iconic retailer Trims goes back to basics in version two

CLOTHING retailer Trims has been resurrected - albeit in a more streamlined version. The inside story about how it rose from the ashes.

JUSTIN Trim was convinced he was going to walk away from it all.

From the family business, perhaps from the retail industry entirely, after the 75-year-old clothing outfitter Trims collapsed mid-last year with debts of more than $3 million.

"I was trying to think of something else to do to try to get away from everything,'' he said this week. "I was a bit scarred by it all and it took a bit more time to get my head around it all and go back into retail.''

For two months he scratched around trying to find a new direction. Trying to find life after Trims, where he was general manager and the third generation of the family to be involved in the business.

All the while though he would have weekly catch-ups with Peta Thompson, who had been Trims operations manager until the May collapse which would leave 30 people out of work. The two would shoot the breeze, talk Trims and contemplate the future.

Unlike Trim, Thompson was keen to be involved with the business in its revived form and was fielding calls from potential buyers who wanted her to remain involved with the company.

Slowly she managed to convince Trim that the answer lay in them forming a partnership to rebuild the iconic Adelaide company.

"I guess once we got together that often to talk about it, it just made sense to maybe buy the business name,'' he said.

The doors to the new business opened in late November, just in time for the Christmas rush.

But there have been a few changes. For one, the old Trims corner site on King William St was caught up in the company's liquidation and could not be used. The new location is on the same side of King William St, just another 300m down the road towards South Terrace.

For another, the new shop is much smaller. The old store in its rambling fashion covered about 1200 square metres of retail space, the new one is about 300 sq m. It does though have some prestigious antecedents, having been a Mercedes showroom in the 1950s.

Thompson said a few customers were initially shocked, but she points out that the basic attractions of Trims had not changed.

"Some people are disappointed when they walk in and say 'Is this it?' " she admitted. "But then you say 'What did you buy?' and they say 'Levi's and RMs (Williams)' and I say it's all here.''

Levi jeans and RM Williams boots and clothing were the mainstay of the first Trims, accounting for 50 per cent of sales and also form the core of the new business.

One of the toughest parts of the resurrection of Trims has been convincing companies which had been burned in the collapse of the original company last year to become involved again.

And as much as Thompson and Trim tried to convince them that this was a new company with no link to Justin's father Russell, who was managing director at the time of the collapse, not everybody would believe them.

"A lot of people somehow think that Russell is backing Justin and it could not be any further from the truth,'' Thompson said, adding that Russell was "politely" asked to stay away from the launch of the new store to avoid any misunderstandings.

"Some people have just said we can't support a Trims business because of what happened,'' he said. "We are having to deal with accountants or people in offices interstate that you have never met.

"So they are people making some decisions on some brands that may or may not be owed money from the old company. They make blanket decisions because of the name and don't ask questions.''

Trim stresses the point that he had no input in the decisions taken that ultimately led to the demise of the old company, and those people in turn have no influence on what he and Thompson are doing with Trims Mk II.

Trim is reluctant to discuss the family dynamic at the moment. The collapse has clearly been costly in emotional as well as financial terms.

"Down the track things might become easier from the family perspective,'' he said. "We will have to see how that works through.''

Crucially though, despite all the drama, Levi and RM Williams jumped on board, although stock now has to be paid for upfront rather than on invoice.

"There is no point in opening a Trims store without Levi's and RM Williams,'' Trim said.

Apart from those two classic labels, other such as Jonsson Workwear, Rossi and Blundstone are part of the new era as well as the US shoe and eyewear outfit Toms, a company which donates a pair of shoes to African children every time it makes a sale.

The duo is also hopeful of attracting more brands this year once they can demonstrate the business is viable and in it for the long haul.

But by design and necessity the latest incarnation of Trims is very much back-to-basics. Apart from the products for sale and the carpet, everything is second hand. There was no money for a fancy design, so all the shop fittings have been used elsewhere. Thompson's husband did much of the carpentry, while friends drove trucks, knocked down walls and laid carpet.

Trim said what he wants to create is a "one-stop shop'' for men.

Trim and Thompson also talk with gratitude about the loyalty of customers who have returned to the fold. Thankfully, it turned out, that while Trims was out of business many of their customers did not know how to replace them.

"It seems like they didn't buy anything in the six months while we were shut,'' Trim said with a laugh.

So far it's all been working well for the duo. Sales have been above budget and on the day The Advertiser interviewed the pair there was a steady stream of customers walking through the store.

The next phase of the plan involves starting an online shop at trims.com.au. The plan is for it to open by March in time for the winter, which was traditionally the busiest time of the year for Trims.

Beyond that though there are no grand plans for expansion. The previous incarnation of the business had stores at Mt Barker, Tea Tree Plaza and Marion and the cost structure of carrying those shops was another reason behind the collapse.

What Thompson and Trim want to do know is prove once again that the business plan that made Trims a household name in South Australia for 75 years can survive in 2014.

"We just wanted to go back to the grassroots of retailing," he said. "You can get served, hopefully get your clothes and walk in and walk out with what you want without having to wait around or wait for the right person to come into the area.''