www.durham.ac.uk/shop

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Winter Congregation………......1

New University

Merchandise…………….……...2

Christmas Festival……………..2

Tombags………………………..2

Getting to know you…………...3

Durham Cityscape Bags………3

Oriental Museum Shop………..4

Social Media Update…………..4

New ranges at Palace Green

Library…………………………...5

Staff Spotlight…………………..5

Staff Recognition Awards…..…6

Coming up soon………………..6

Winter 2014

Issue 4

SHOPTALK

Durham University

Retail Office

@DurhamUniRetail

Durham University Retail

Office

WELCOME BACK Welcome to the Winter edition of the Durham University Retail Office newsletter. Christmas

and New Year are fast approaching and there is so much going on! Christmas Festival Prepa-

ration (page 2) has been on the go and deliveries for Winter Congregation (Page 1) are coming

in. The new University merchandise is up and in full flow (Page 2) with beautiful new Durham

Cityscape Bags as our feature product for this issue (Page 3). We get to know the new Retail

Intern, Amelia, (page 3) and we have a beautiful, colourful feature on the Oriental Museum

(page 4). Our Social Media presence is slowly growing with hopes to expand (page 4) and our

Palace Green Library range is playing out like a fairy tale! We say hello and goodbye to staff

(page 5) and don’t forget to get voting in the staff recognition awards before December 10th

(page 6)!

WINTER CONGREGATION

Please send any contributions for

our next newsletter (out in March)

to shop@durham.ac.uk

or call 0191 334 3563

Winter congregation is another busy time for

the retail office. An exciting time for gradu-

ates who could not or did not want to be at

summer congregation. Glasses of cham-

pagne will be on sale along with lots of Uni-

versity Merchandise! A wide range will be

available at our University merchandise

stand, selling everything from prints of

Durham to our bestselling graduation bear.

We will have our usual pop-up shop within

the Graduation fair in the Quad at St. Chads.

The 8th and 9th of January will be when

all the preparations come together. We

are already accepting lots of deliveries

and stocking up our outlets!

We have also put some champagne on

our website so that students are able to

just collect it on the day and not delay the

celebrations by having to queue. We

can’t wait!

The huge, heated Craft and Gift Marquee on Palace Green will feature over

190 stalls across all three days of the event including our own pop-up shop so

please look out for us!

NEW DURHAM UNIVERSITY MERCHANDISE

During the past few months we have been pro-

moting some of our ‘new for 2014’

#DurhamUniversity branded products.

New clothing lines were launched in time for the

new academic year including bomber jackets,

sweatshirts, hoodies and slouchy T-shirts.

We have also had high quality tote bags made

with a bespoke Durham cityscape printed on

them (see our feature on them on page 3!).

CHRISTMAS FESTIVAL!

2

TOMBAGS

As part of our brand expansion we

have launched a new style of bag.

Tombags!

Durham's award-winning, 21st annual

Christmas Festival returns from Friday

5th December 2014 for three days, with

a wide range of festive entertainment for

all the family in and around the World

Heritage Site of the Cathedral and the

Castle.

For more information on this event please visit www.durhamchristmasfestival.com

In the Cathedral Cloisters, a Local

Food Producers Market featuring

another 30+ traders will operate

each day.

They are bags with a style based

on military kit bags and have

proved to be popular amongst

celebrities, with Nick Grimshaw

seen using one!

We hope they prove to be as popu-

lar here!

All of our new items are available on our online shop www.dur.ac.uk/shop

v

Name: Amelia Monks

Job Title: Retail Intern

As this years retail intern I manage the

social media, carry out many financial pro-

cesses for the office and chip in with any-

thing I can, from scheduling the window by

Waterstones to helping to co-ordinate the

art exhibitions.

1. Do you have any pets?

No, but I desperately want one! I have only

ever been allowed gerbils but I’m hoping to

end up having a big fluffy dog to cuddle!

2. What are you reading at the moment?

I just finished a book called ‘The Taliban

Cricket Club’. It was so, so good. I love

cricket and it was a book that played with

my heart, a fantastic combo!

3. Which historical figure would you

most like to be?

Well, I was named after Amelia Earhart

who was the first woman to fly solo across

the Atlantic. She was adventurous, brave

and went against the grain of what was

normal at the time. I’d love to be like her!

4. What was your best subject at

school?

Probably Biology but Government and

Politics is a close second. Religious studies

was a favourite too. Probably why I went on

to study Anthropology at Durham.

5. What did you want to be when you

were a child?

I don’t think there was one single thing, but

I know in my adolescent years I wanted to

be a clinical psychologist so that I could

help people through their problems and

help improve their mental health.

6. Where will you be going for your next

holiday?

Oh that’s a tough one. I have nothing

booked but I would love to visit a friend in

Malaysia but I would also love to go to

Kenya. Who knows where I’ll end up!

7. What is your favourite drink?

I like a good coffee. A nice Mocha on a

cold winters night is very appealing this

winter time.

8. What skill or talent would you most

like to acquire?

I would love to be flexible and acrobatic. I

admire the fitness level and strength of

those athletes. And I think being able to do

a back flip would be pretty cool!

9. What’s your greatest vice?

Chocolate. Chocolate. Chocolate. I eat way

to much of the stuff and once I start I can’t

stop.

10. What’s your favourite film?

I adore the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and

watch it once a year. They really motivate

me and make me feel that even in the dark-

est times, good can flourish.

11. Do you have any nicknames?

Only a couple of people call me Meels/

Milly. But not many. I remember a friend

called my house one time and asked for

‘Milly’ and my Dad answered and said: ‘No

one of that name lives here’ and hung up!

12. Where’s your favourite place in the

world?

This is a very difficult question! No idea!

13. What one item would you take to a

desert island?

Probably a sewing kit. Sounds boring but

you’ve got scissors to cut nails (long nails

would cause havoc) and make tools and a

needle and thread to mend clothes!

14. What would be your ideal day?

I would love to go on a nice Winter walk

(with a dog) to a good country pub, have

Sunday lunch and a pint with friends by the

fire. Then back home to have a hot bath

then watch a film with my family eating

chocolate.

15. What achievement are you most

proud of?

During my teenage years I was a keen

oboist and performed in the Royal Albert

Hall 3 times. But in my adult life it’s got to

be getting a first class honours degree from

Durham!

3

GETTING TO KNOW YOU

DURHAM CITY-

SCAPE BAGS

These bags have been Ethical-

ly made and are ecologically

sound, produced especially for

us! They feature a fantastic

design by Julia Gash.

With an ‘I ’heart’ Durham’

Badge these will make the

perfect memento for anyone

who has lived in Durham.

They are stocked in Palace

Green Library, the Botanic

Garden Shop and the World

Heritage Site Visitors Centre.

They are a firm favourite with

all of us in the office. The

small bag is just so cute!

Make sure to grab yours before

they all go!

VISIT THE ORIENTAL MUSEUM!

The shop at the Oriental Museum has gifts themed around China, Japan, Egypt, Ko-rea and India. Wherever possible we source products from the country of origin, giv-ing us a rather unique collection– from Fairtrade elephant dung notebooks to Korean wedding ducks and glass hanging decorations handmade in Egypt to Samurai rubber

ducks!

4

SOCIAL MEDIA

UPDATE

Our Facebook page now has 257

likes. We are hoping to reach 300

in the next couple of months. Help

us get there by inviting your friends

and family to join. We will have a

celebration when we get there so

get excited!

If you have anything you want to

promote about your outlet then just

drop Amelia an e-mail and we can

feature you in a post! Please e-

mail: amelia.monks@durham.ac.uk

Our Twitter page is also thriving

with 484 followers. Our most pop-

ular posts come from our ‘sneak

peak’ photos. If you fancy follow-

ing us for updates on what’s hap-

pening up at the office or sneak

peaks at what is coming up next for

our range then search for Durham

Uni Retail!

Did you know we now have Pinter-

est? Follow our page and see what

we are pinning...we are building a

collection of our favourite photo-

graphs of Durham and around the

University, if you have your own

Pinterest page it would be great to

see some of our products re-

pinned.

Amelia, Our Retail Intern is carry-

ing on our weekly Intern Diary

Blog. She is currently doing a

series on Time Management. If

you want to find out some secrets

on how to get more done in the

time you have then give it a read!

Just go to our official shop website

and click on the ‘Blog’ tab.

Another popular item from Korea is our wedding ducks, which are a traditional

wedding gift. The newly-wed couple dis-play a pair of these wooden ducks in their home; facing together if they are getting on well, and facing in opposite directions if the relationship isn’t quite so harmoni-

ous!

Our Indian merchandise is eco-friendly and Fairtrade, handmade

by local people using recycled and sustainably sourced materials. We have some lovely leather journals, as well as colourful Sari notebooks

and hand-carved wooden boxes and frames. Buying this merchan-dise directly helps the people who

have made them by providing them with fairly paid work.

Look out for our new range of Egyptian stock from the British Museum, We have pharaoh cufflinks, mummy pencil tins and Rosetta stone jigsaw

puzzles.

The next time you’re looking for something

different from the high street, give us a try!

We are particularly proud of our wide selection of Korean ce-

ramics, including vases, cups, trinket boxes and trays. They

are made with a celadon glaze, which is a beautiful subtle

shade of green, and are hand-made in South Korea.

We also have official University merchan-dise, a selection of cards with an Oriental

twist and pocket money items. You will find the famous Japanese Lucky Cat range in

our shop (as seen above).

Winter Congregation is on the 8th and 9th of January 2015. Be sure to visit us in the St Chad’s college Quad and say hello!

Take a look at some of our new, and already very popular, ranges

featured at Palace Green Library…

Staff Spotlight

Farewell Bethany!

After 3 years of working part time for the Retail Office, Bethany has left to

take up a position as Buying Assistant at Dunelm Mill in Leicester. This is

a great move for her and we wish her all the luck for her new adventure.

Welcome to Ann Chapman

We would like to extend a warm welcome to Ann, who is helping out in

the retail office over the Christmas Period. Ann comes from a vast back-

ground in Retail Management, and has been settling in very well with the

rest of the team.

Amy Wilkinson’s appointment as Housekeeping and Cleaning

Services manager:

Amy Wilkinson has now left the Retail Office, due to her recent appoint-

ment as the new Housekeeping and Cleaning Services Manager. Amy

has been with the Retail Office for many years now and we will be sad to

see her go. I’m sure you will all join us in wishing her the best of luck in

her new position.

Well done to Vicky:

The Retail Team would like to thank Vicky for all her hard work in carrying

us through the past few challenging months. She has worked incredibly

hard, and has led the team through a number of successes! Thanks

Vicky.

*Have any achievements you’d like to share? Please contact Pia on p.l.neave@durham.ac.uk and let us know what you’ve been up to!

5

NEW RANGES AT PALACE GREEN LIBRARY

Fairy Tales This beautiful range by Heather Alstead Design is 100% created and manufactured in Britain. A unique and original range of prod-ucts, the influence of classic fairy tales is clearly shown within stunning black and white designs featuring The Princess and the Frog, Goldilocks and the 3 Bears along with many more!

Pencil Shavings Cards

Our range of cards by designer Ruth Jackson have become

incredibly popular already - they are all lovingly made in Great

Britain and there are options for every occasion imaginable

including some new Christmas ones!

COMING UP

SOON IN

DECEMBER

Christmas Festival is happening on

the 6th & 7th December so be

sure to come along for all things

Christmas!

Get on down to the Botanic Gar-

den for a traditional crafts weekend

on the 13th & 14th December.

Palace Green Library is giving you

the opportunity to make your own

Christmas crackers on the 20th &

21st December.

www.durham.ac.uk/shop

Durham University Retail Office

Mountjoy Centre, Maple Wing

Stockton Road

Durham

DH1 3LE

Phone: 0191 334 3563

E-mail: shop@durham.ac.uk

STAFF RECOGNITION AWARDS

Last year at the

Recognition awards...

(l-r) Hannah Taylor, Pia Neave,

Jayne Setchell, Oliver Farren

It’s a very exciting time in the Retail Office, as we approach the run up to the

annual Catering, Event Durham and Retail Recognition Awards.

The team recognition awards are designed to acknowledge the hard work of

team members across Retail, Event Durham and Catering Teams and those

who have made an outstanding contribution to progressing standards within

their department and the University. The recognition evening is a brilliant

night of awards, and celebrations, highlighting the success of our teams and

colleagues.

Last year the Retail Office had a great year and the following people were

acknowledged:

Hannah Taylor – Retail Office – Newcomer of the Year (Winner)

Oliver Farren – Howlands Shop – Upselling (Highly Commended)

Jayne Setchell – Palace Green Library Shop – Extra Mile (Highly Com-

mended)

Pia Neave – Retail Office – Outstanding Contribution to a Team (Highly

Commended)

We can only win awards, and recognise our teams and colleagues success

with nominations from yourselves, so please get thinking about your nomina-

tions!! The closing date for nominations is December 10th. It would be great if

we could continue on from last year’s success and do even better!

If you feel like a member of your team has gone the extra mile or a manager

has supported you, and you would like to see them recognised please make

sure to get your forms in with examples of how amazing they have been!

I can’t stress enough how important it is to vote for your colleagues

and highlight the brilliant work we’ve done as a team this year!!

The awards evening is 9th January 2015, and it is a great night of fun with a

free glass of bubbly and some food.

COMING UP

SOON IN THE

NEW YEAR

The Oriental Museum has a

‘Walk like a Pharaoh’ event

on 24th January where you

can make your own Pharaoh

mask to wear with pride.

You can also celebrate Chi-

nese New Year at the Orien-

tal Museum starting on the

18th February to help you

welcome the Year of the

Sheep!