Building a Life Beyond Retail - Tips for Balance and Career Growth

Welcome to Retail Reckoning. I'm Clare Bailey, founder of Retail Champion.

In this special episode, I sit down with Steph, a key member of the Retail Champion team, to dig beneath the surface—beyond e-commerce tactics and spreadsheet strategies—to explore the person behind the consultancy.

We'll hear how Steph reinvented her life and career by moving to Scotland, reshaping her work to support her passions.

Together, we share candid insights on finding real work-life balance, turning business challenges into practical advice for independent retailers, and why building a business should enhance your life—not consume it.

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
In this special episode, we're going behind the scenes with the team at the Retail
Champion. And today you get to meet Steph and understand a little bit more
about who she really is.
Today we're back with my colleague Steph, who Talked about Quarter
4 and E Commerce on a recent episode. But instead of talking about

(00:23):
peak season basics and tactics, we're going to talk to
Steph about the person she is, the work she's doing now,
her contribution to the Retail Champion and everything else as well.
Behind the spreadsheets and the strategies is someone who's consistently involving
both in business and life and I think serves as an inspiration to
many of the independent retailers out there. Yeah,

(00:46):
Retail reckoning. Retail
reckoning. No space for dusty
shelves. Retail reckoning
owns the floor. So, Steph,
your E Commerce journey is genuinely inspiring, but now
you're at a new stage. Tell us about your move to Scotland and

(01:08):
now your newfound focus through stephbriggs.co.uk.
It'S a new chapter. Moving to Scotland was partly about
lifestyle, but also partly about opportunity. I wanted to create
a different life where work supports living and not the other way
around. I'm sometimes not great at getting the balance right,
historically. The consultancy gives me the space to advise and

(01:29):
share all of the experiences I've learned and the mistakes I've made and helps
people avoid those and still have time for the things that I love, like
my horses. Yeah, work life balance is so important
and I can actually relate to your move. I moved
from down south to rural Lincolnshire to get that work life
balance so that I didn't have to work every hour. God sent. And have the

(01:51):
kids in holiday clubs and breakfast clubs and after school
clubs just to make ends meet. So it's something I think a lot of business
owners do have to face up to, certainly once family
pressures take over. And the fact that you've lived the retail
challenges makes your advice much more practical rather
than theoretical as well. It's interesting to be able

(02:13):
to tell those clients about how to manage the
juggling act and not choose which a hundred hours of work
they do a week. I mean, running your own business is fun
many times, but I have heard that comment about,
yeah, it's great. I have the freedom to choose the 100 hours a week
I work. And that's not a really great life. And we always use that

(02:36):
adage, don't we, that if you do a job you love, you'll never work a
day in your life. And I think that's also really important. But helping people
Fall back in love with their work is where experts like
you come along so that they can develop the strategies and
make it a success. But I'm more interested at this moment in
time about the horses that you mention. Explain

(02:58):
how they fit into your story. I've been addicted to horses for
many years, since I was a little girl. They keep me grounded
and retail can be absolutely relentless. Running a business
is relentless. But looking after horses really
helped me step away from the laptop, step away from the phone
and just reset and just have that moment of being in the

(03:21):
moment, really. It's a perspective and reminding me that life is bigger than
just the next product, drop the VAT return or the next campaign. I think that's
a real valuable message for independence and building a
business should enhance your lifestyle, not consume it.
So whatever your hobbies are, make sure you have me time,
I think, is the key message there.

(03:45):
Of course, you're now very much an integral part of the Retail
Champion team, have been for a number of years, from your perspective,
because obviously I have my view. What does that role look like to you?
It's about being that second pair of eyes that help clients see
opportunities that they might otherwise miss, either in pricing,
promotions, e commerce, branding, whatever it may be. I

(04:06):
bring the operational lens from my own retail journey and my
understanding of how it feels to be in that moment and
translate it into practical actions for other people to take.
So the blend of empathy and expertise is why our clients
trust you and they know you've walked the walk. But you also
do an awful lot for me within the business too, don't you? I think you

(04:28):
should share a little bit about some of that. I
caretake the website, I look at content,
I look at digital presence. It's how we get
found. Steph is also the custodian of all our
internal content, Blogmaster General
and SEO aficionado. I think we need to look ahead

(04:51):
now because obviously you've come out from having
originally had a shop, then the move to Scotland, moving to online
only, and then the decision to use everything you've learned over the years
to help others and move into the consultancy side.
What excites you most about the next stage of your career? What
kind of things are you looking forward to and where are you

(05:13):
investing your time and energy in terms of things like personal development?
With regard to personal development, obviously AI is a
massive area of growth within, well, within any industry
at the moment. So I'm really enjoying exploring that and
learning more and more about it. What excites me about
working with the retail champion is working with the independents who are

(05:35):
ready to evolve and grow. Not just the ones that
want the quick wins, but want real long term value and long term
resilience so that they can face, dare I say, the next Covid or whatever
the next curveball is that's going to throw retail way.
Personally, I'm really excited about now having a little
bit more time to balance consultancy life outdoors in

(05:58):
Scotland. Obviously I have my horses, but also I like a quick
dip in the sea, even in Scotland. And it's about
shaping life outside of work as much as helping
to shape retail businesses. Brilliant. And I think that's the
kind of future proofing we all need so that we have
work that funds a happy and successful life. Thank you very much,

(06:21):
Steph. Today's episode has shown that retail success isn't just about
margins and marketing. It's about building a business and a
life, a quality of life that align and support whatever
phase you're in in your career and your personal
goals. And it's also something worth really listening to to
understand that if you want to do things

(06:43):
differently, you can and you can make that balance
come to life for the benefit of yourself, your family,
your hobbies and your income. Thank you, Steph.
You've been listening to Retail Reckoning. My name's Claire Bailey, the Retail
Champion. See you next time.

(07:12):
Owns the floor.
Sam.