00:00We came out to ask Margate's independent businesses what it's like to be part of the seaside town
00:05and potentially what changes they're seeing over the colder months.
00:09The Store Collective is one of the small businesses here focused on sustainable brands and designers.
00:14We asked the owner Kate what her favourite parts of owning an independent business in Margate are
00:19and any effects the cost of living might be having on day-to-day running.
00:23I love it here people are so friendly and supportive people will come and shop small shop with
00:29independence they will come and support definitely I think people are a bit more price conscious
00:35and that gets more and more so as time goes on so we have definitely we do a lot of
00:40sort of design
00:41led and Scandinavian brands here but we've also looked to try and get designs in that are a little
00:46bit friendlier on the pocket so that people can there are there's a whole range of things that
00:51people can afford. Just down the road we came to Giant Coffee to speak with the owner Amelia about
00:57her experience of the Margate community since opening her business two and a half years ago.
01:01It's such a vibrant fun incredible space and I am so so incredibly proud to be one of the small
01:07business owners that operates here. When you're investing you're really investing in quality and
01:11you're investing in someone who's incredibly passionate about what they do. Everyone is doing
01:15something fabulous they are doing something that they are so genuinely passionate about that they really
01:19give a hundred and fifty thousand percent to. In summer we get all the tourist kind of trade come
01:23through which is fantastic you know we're a seaside town you kind of expect that over the summer season
01:28you get a lot lot more footfall every single year out of season just gets busier and busier
01:33I've already seen it level out a little bit more I'd like to see that continue.
01:38On the seafront we spoke to Jason who recently opened the bar The Cockle and Hen during the summer
01:43and asked him about his experience being part of the town so far. I've been reasonably busy
01:48throughout the summer with the local tourism it's been a lot of fun and I've enjoyed meeting
01:53lots of new people definitely slowed down a bit the first little bit of September was very very slow
01:58since then we've noticed it started to gradually pick back up again. Whilst in Margate we've seen
02:03ourselves how busy the town can be even out of the peak summer tourism months and the benefits
02:08small businesses are continuing to see. Molly Field and Laura Smith reporting for KMTV
