Case Study: The General Store, Selkirk
Multitasking is now possible Selkirk social enterprise The General Store, which generates environmental and community benefits through its repair and reuse services, for tech and tools, thanks to better broadband from GoFibre.
The reuse shop in the centre of Selkirk has seen a “huge” benefit to its business since connecting to GoFibre, the lightning fast and locally-focused broadband provider with a big presence in towns across the Borders.
The Store has two premises and an 18-strong team, a mixture of employees, freelancers and volunteers. Founded on environmental principles – it’s better for the planet if we repair goods rather than buy new – The General Store is run on a not-for-profit basis and caters to a wide range of customers, including older clients who they can also talk through how to use their technology. Their aim is to reduce landfill and support their community, based in an accessible location in the centre of Selkirk.
“Better broadband has made a huge difference,” said Sue Briggs, founder of the not-for-profit. “The speed of the connection we now have means that we can be a fixing a laptop for someone, downloading software patches, showing someone how to use WhatsApp, and having a conversation with a customer all at the same time. Multitasking is now possible and it wasn’t before. It’s been a huge boost to the business.”
Increasing the speed and reliability of their connection has made doing business much easier, explained Sue, as it’s fundamental to everything they do. “ We can have three laptop fixes on the go at the same time which was impossible before. We can run our business far more effectively than we could before.”
As well as repairing a range of items, including electrical and tech items like laptops and tablets, the General Store runs a tool library where people can borrow tools for the cost of a small membership fee. It also runs a computer clinic, where customers bring in their devices to get some coaching. Sue and team often take their clinic out on the road, around the community, promoting their services and helping people with their tech queries.
