Our clients are generally well travelled with a good eye for beautiful and collectable things; they come to us knowing they’ll get great service and their choices will be delivered to the recipient on time and beautifully wrapped…”
Fiona Dreesmann, FIONA FINDS
Spring is the time to refresh the home and garden in anticipation of Summer indoor/outdoor entertaining and here in Belgravia, London, the ‘FIONA FINDS’ boutique owned by Fiona Dreesmann, is literally blooming with gorgeous pieces. Fiona is dedicated to hand-picking the finest selection of home wares, ceramics and impossibly chic items you didn’t even know you needed, for example, ‘hero’ items consist of small coloured glass vases or extra-long leather match boxes (perfect for lighting candles, fires and/or cigars) that can be made bespoke as gifts with the recipients’ house name embossed on it. Here we meet Fiona to discuss her design inspirations…
Having spent my working life in the luxury sector, I was always being asked where I bought things; I decided it was time to curate a collection of my favourite things and the business has snowballed from there. I sold out on the first day and have never looked back…”
Fiona Dreesmann, FIONA FINDS
NS: ”Fiona, I’d imagine Belgravia is the perfect location for your boutique as it’s central to your audience – streets filled with beautiful homes and a very socially-active potential client base…”
FD: ”Yes, when I first launched the business in 2019, I had a showroom in Chelsea from which we offered viewings of our collection ‘by appointment’ and also provided an online service, however post-lockdown people wanted to go out shopping again and it was time for a dedicated store. Belgravia sits neatly between Mayfair and Chelsea and, conveniently, it’s out of the congestion zone. A mix of ‘bricks and mortar’ in Lowndes Street and an online business is the perfect combination for me; the business has benefited from passing trade and also having the shop window for my displays that attracts passers-by…”
We pride ourselves on our customer service. Everything is available online and in the shop and can be delivered to your door, often on the same day as purchase. We also hold in-house ’exclusives’ and we ship worldwide…
Fiona Dreesmann, FIONA FINDS
NS: “How much does socialising come into play when heightening awareness of FIONA FINDS? Do you meet new clients when you’re attending special events and/or charity fundraisers?”
FD: “Of course I’m my own number one ambassador, so when I’m entertaining at home I always use FIONA FINDS collections and this is often a talking point for guests – as I’ve grown the business, I’m constantly on the lookout for new brands and ideas and am keen to learn from friends and clients and I welcome their thoughts. Ultimately, the brand is less about me personally and more about offering great product with my position being to help guide clients in making lasting choices…”
“We’ve grown organically over time using the boutique as a show case for the brand. Instagram, newsletters and private invitations to previews are, of course, incredibly helpful but probably the most successful factor for us has been good old-fashioned word of mouth and I’m delighted to say we sell more in store than online. I’m passionate about supporting smaller more local businesses and shops where possible, so whether for groceries or fine bone china, in this day and age it’s important to serve local clients and help with their needs. I’m also a great advocate for enjoying your purchases every day and not saving things for special occasions – my motto is ‘use it, or lose it!’”
“Since launching FIONA FINDS, we’ve worked with a few charities and, once again, this year we’ll be working with ‘Lady Garden’ for a charity day during Chelsea Flower Show where we give a percentage of the sales for the day to them. We’ve had the pleasure of donating a few store breakfasts together with a voucher for the store; we try to help where we can…”
I find things on my travels and I’m always in search of the most unusual and desirable items to enhance your home; I pride myself on finding unique one-off pieces or larger collections such as hand painted dinner services, raffia and glass salad bowls for elegant garden dining…”
Fiona Dreesmann, FIONA FINDS
NS: “Of all the beautiful, unique pieces you offer, which are the most popular?”
FD: ”We stock everything for entertaining at home and I pride myself on having items ranging from only ten pounds up to thousands; glass and linens are the most popular items and many of them are exclusive to FIONA FINDS – they make an excellent gift or can be a small self-indulgence which instantly transforms the look of your table. There’s an increasing trend for tablescaping so people who cook and entertain often wish to change the look of their dining room or kitchen with varying dinner services and additional table accessories…”
I’m so happy to see the return of patterns in interiors and this is reflected in plates with colour; having said that, true style is never a ‘trend’ but something that is timeless…”
Fiona Dreesmann, FIONA FINDS
NS: ”Words used in the retail sector when it comes to exclusive brands are often ’hand-crafted’, ’unique’ and/or ’bespoke’ – do you sell any own label products?”
FD: ”Yes, we have many things made exclusively for us such as the hand-painted glasses and linens, some of which I’ve designed personally, and then there are other pieces which may be an exclusive colour to us such as our ‘Alodia’ plate collection made by Royal Limoges where the chocolate brown colour is only available at FIONA FINDS. We’re working on a couple of exciting collaborations at the moment and are thrilled to be hosting more wedding lists….”
NS: ”Final question! Do you have a motto or by words that you live by when it comes to your business?”
FD: ”Yes, I subscribe to the theory of William Morris, ‘Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful’…”
WEBSITE: http://www.fionafinds.co.uk
