The British Independent Retailers Association (Bira) is calling on independent retailers to sign up to its new online trading site to help them recover from the pandemic.

The website, which is being launched in February 2022, will provide independent retailers with a new, cost-effective way to sell online, helping them build their presence both locally and nationally. The UK-wide platform, called Neartoo, is open to all types of retail and will be owned by indies, exclusively for indies, and will operate at significantly lower sales commission than its competitors.

Developed in the wake of the pandemic, which resulted in at least one in five independents closing for good, the nationally-advertised platform will be offering indies the chance to rebuild and grow their business on an easy to use platform designed for them. This platform, Neartoo.co.uk, will complement their physical store and help indies move to a ‘hybrid’ model of retailing. Neartoo also maximises consumers’ growing thirst to shop locally and independently, guaranteeing that money spent within a community remains there.

Every retailer will be sharing individual profiles, enabling the consumer to know who they are buying from. This will retain that personal relationship independent retailers and consumers value. Hundreds of Bira members have already signed up in just a few weeks since it was launched to businesses before it goes live to customers. Shop owners are able to either sync their existing online sales platform, or create their own through the platform if they haven’t be able to afford to create an online presence yet.

For Bira members, use of the platform is free for 12 months, and for non-Bira members, they can sign up and get five months free.

Bira’s CEO Andrew Goodacre said: “The pandemic has accelerated shopping behaviours, with more use of the internet and people also shopping more locally.

"This platform, owned by independents, addresses both of those societal changes, and will allow these retailers to open up new ways of selling to customers, and more profitably.

"This is a really exciting opportunity for indies throughout the UK to be able to start selling online or increase their own visibility. It will get their products out to a wider audience and the fact so many of our members have already signed up and have seen the potential, is fantastic.

"Bira wants to help independent retailers achieve their ambitions. If there is another lockdown it will mean that stores can still sell through click and collect and not lose business to other multinational online trading stores such as Amazon. There is such a huge gap between indies not having an online presence and we believe they have been left behind for far too long with big tech companies taking over. This is the answer for thousands of indie stores across the UK to still maintain a bricks and mortar presence on the high street, while also allowing them to sell online but at a lower cost.”
 
Benefits at a glance

To the retailer:

• Owned by indies, exclusively for indies
• Greatly reduced cost and time savings, significantly beating competitors
• One-click product uploads
• Automatic uploading of a retailer’s other platform links
• Being part of one order from a consumer where before they may not have been worth a separate consumer order
• Nationally-advertised platform attracting shoppers locally and UK-wide

 
To the consumer:

• Increase value to local economy
• Shoppers know who and where they are buying from, through personal shop profiles
• Reduced delivery mileage providing environmental savings and boosting local employment
• Options for delivery, click ‘n’ collect, or in-person collection
• In-built Google Maps to show store’s location and help shoppers plan route

 
To sign up or find out more about Neartoo, independent stores (even if not a member) can contact the membership team on 0800 028 0245 or email membership@bira.co.uk