32 JULY  2012

Retailer Profile: Jill Wilcox

Local celebrityAward-winning retailer Jill Wilcox proves that, in business and in life,

it’s kindness that really counts

By Laurie O’Halloran

Anyone who thinks the future ofthe independent retailer is injeopardy hasn’t met Jill Wilcox.

The owner of Jill’s Table in London, On-tario – a bustling, mid-sized city of365,000 about two hours west of Toron-to – is not only one of the hardest work-ing retailers in our industry, she’s alsoone of the smartest.

Multi-talented, Jill oversees the dailyoperations of her 2,000 square footkitchen shop, writes a weekly food col-umn for the London Free Press, is aboutto publish her fifth cookbook, conductsseasonal cooking classes that sell outregularly, and she now takes selectgroups on annual cooking tours of Italyand France! As if that’s not enough, Jillhas recently embraced social media as away to connect with her customers,tweeting regularly during her travels.

Her knowledge of food and skills as acook have made Jill a culinary icon inthis thriving university city. But it’s herability to communicate with her cus-tomers that has propelled her to the top.

Communication skills, both spokenand written, have always been Jill’sforté. Born and raised in London, herfirst love was the arts, but her fatherpassed away when she was only 18 andJill had to find a way to help support hermother. In 1978, she started working asa clerk/stenographer for the Free Presswhile working on her fine art degreepart-time at Western University.

At one point, she was given the op-portunity to do some writing for thenewspaper’s food section. Jill had al-ways loved to cook and often brought

baked goodies in for co-workers. Thatjob developed into a long stint as a foodwriter and book reviewer. She garneredquite a following, eventually landing herown column, which ran twice a week.

In the 1990s the paper was downsiz-ing, and Jill decided to accept a buyoutand focus on a food styling business shehad started. Leaving the newspaper be-hind, she put 100% of her energy into“The Creative Palate”. The year was1994, and she was in her element stylingfood professionally for big manufactur-ers and major brands.

Then a friend suggested she open aspecialty shop offering the gadgets andhard-to-find ingredients that they werealways looking for. At the time, theCovent Garden Market in downtown

HOME STYLE MAGAZINE 33

London was undergoing a completerenovation but there were two perma-nents spots left for rent.

Jill went out to visit the market oper-ators and decided to take the retailplunge. In a few short weeks, she put to-gether a detailed business plan fromscratch, including plumbing, electrical,product inventory, etc.

“I had absolutely no retail experi-ence,” she recalls with a laugh. “It wasone of the most exhilarating and terrify-ing experiences of my life.”

A hands-on operator, Jill eagerlydonned a hard hat and work boots asshe painted floors, drove back and forthto buy products in Toronto and workedwith designers to develop a specific‘look’ for her 500-square-foot space.

What they created was a colourfulMediterranean specialty food store of-fering great olive oils and vinegars plusa select assortment of tableware andgadgets. With Jill’s culinary know-howand her incredible way with customers,the place took off immediately.

In 1997, well-known London retailerAnn McColl Lindsay announced thatshe was retiring and closing down herstore on King St., which happened to beright across the road from Covent Gar-den Market. It presented a wonderfulopportunity for Jill to expand, and shejumped at it.

“I was able to take over a space thatwas four times larger than my marketspace,” she says. “And I was also able tofill that big hole that Ann was leaving in

the community. Now we could offer notonly specialty foods, but the wholegamut of kitchenware, small electricsand cookware.”

She changed the whole look of thespace, adding a full service kitchen andseveral new categories. Today, the storeis promoted as a “Feast of Kitchen Es-sentials”. But with Jill at the helm, thebusiness has blossomed into so muchmore. In addition to selling housewaresand gourmet food, the store isrenowned for its beautiful gift basketsand popular cooking classes as well asJill’s cooking tours. (She has partneredwith a firm in London that owns a prop-erty in the south of France. She takessmall groups over for tours of the localmarkets and cooks with them.)

Always willing to give back, Jill do-nates regularly to local charities, con-tributes about $10,000 worth of end-of-line products to local shelters, sponsorsseveral neighborhood events and sits onseveral advisory committees devoted toculinary education and the arts.

Her entrepreneurial success has beenrecognized by the CGTA as well as thelocal business community. In March,Jill’s Table was nominated by the Lon-don Chamber of Commerce for a Busi-ness Achievement Award. (Nearly 1,200

Far left: Jill Wilcox and the store that shetook over from Ann McColl Lindsay in1997. Above: island displays in the storefocus on gadgets for gift giving and wood-enware. Left: Sue Andrew at the cash deskfeaturing a welcome chalk board.

34 JULY  2012

people attended the gala dinner and Jill,who says it was “an amazing experi-ence”, filled three tables with her em-ployees, friends and family members.)

This year Jill Wilcox was also nomi-nated by RBC for the Women’s Entre-preneur Award, an incredible achieve-ment for any small business owner.

Thirteen years into retailing, Jill ac-knowledges that one of her real chal-lenges today is finding ways to attract ayounger clientele and keep her businessrelevant. She has always published awonderful newsletter (over 4,000 copiesare distributed by mail or in the store)and sold her gift baskets online but nowthe website is being revamped and Jillhas embraced digital media as a way tocommunicate with customers.

“I tweet when I travel or we’ll do lit-tle buzzes from various locations, “ shesays. “I’m convinced digital media is thefuture and it’s become an incredible toolfor us. I love it! I’ve got about 250 fol-lowers so far but it’s changing so quick-ly, you have to be on board.”

She adds, “the biggest concern of in-dependent retailers used to be the bigbox stores. Today it’s the web, too.”

As with most things, Jill has risen tothe challenge of going after a younger,tech-savvy demographic who live ontheir smart phones. And her audience isresponding. Last September she was inItaly and tweeting regularly. When shereturned, people would stop her in themarket and tell her they had been fol-lowing her, and asking about certain in-gredients. They were mostly young peo-ple, she says. Naturally, a gorgeous dis-play of pizza stones and Italian kitchentools appeared in the store shortly after.

Though younger customers don’thave a large disposable income, they doappreciate quality products. Jill findsit’s a very international market today,people are well travelled and they haveso much access to information, theywant a great food experience. Andthey’re willing to pay for it.

“London is changing, there are differ-ent immigration trends and access tomany different foods,” Jill says. “Itkeeps getting more diverse and excitingwith an interesting mix of students,

Retailer Profile: Jill Wilcox

Visitors are greeted with a multi-layered display that changes with the season. This onehighlighted barbecue products to celebrate Canada Day. Below, the interior of the storehas warm yellow walls, a white recessed ceiling and single-brand product displays.

36 JULY  2012

Retailer Profile: Jill Wilcox

tem helps streamline the buying processand track sales – data that will help usserve customers better in the future.”

Although she is known as a toughbusiness person, Heather learned veryquickly that the real reason for Jill’s suc-cess is her kindness, plain and simple.

“Jill is all about the customer, more sothan any retailer I’ve ever known,” saysHeather, who had prior experience witha leading national chain. “She’s a truefood maven and people in our commu-nity seek her out for her culinary wis-dom. The loyalty of Jill’s customers isextraordinary. They trust her, they de-pend on her, and now they even followher on twitter. She is just an exception-ally kind person – to everyone, all thetime – and people react to that.”

Suppliers feel the same way. Withover 10,000 skus in the store, buyingtakes a fair bit of time and requires closerelationships with vendors. Jill attendsboth Toronto gift shows, the Chicagohousewares show, at least one foodshow, and next year hopes to attend theFrankfurt Fair and the New York giftfair. Jill looks forward to the events as away to reconnect and regularly sched-ules meetings to discuss current issues.

“I’m shocked when I hear about re-tailers who don’t attend trade shows,”says Jill. “They’re always a good invest-

young couples and boomers movingback here for a small city experience.”

In addition to her multitude of cook-ing and writing duties, Jill still does allthe buying for the store. But one impor-tant lesson she has learned is that shesimply can’t always do it all herself“You eventually realize that you can’tdo everything well and you need to hiregood talent from outside,” she says.

So four years ago she created a coreretail plan to help take her business for-ward. To implement that vision andtake over management of the store, shehired Heather Carey, a sharp savvywoman with retail experience, to be heroperations manager.

Heather knew about Jill, of course, fromher column in the Free Press, and as a cus-tomer. She was ready to help modernizethe business, and one of her first steps wasthe installation of a computerized invento-ry management system. Heather alsohelped Jill embrace social media and al-though they have occasionally had a clashof ideas, the two clearly complement eachother and work well together.

“Jill is very bright but she knows herlimitations,” explains Heather. “She hasa very interesting background, and shedefinitely knows food, but she also real-izes that change is afoot, and it’s hap-pening faster. The new computer sys-

ment, a chance to get away from yourhome turf, and an opportunity to findout what’s going on in your industry.They’re invaluable.”

Exhibitors, of course are alwayshappy to welcome Jill to their booth andmany are quick to sing her praises.Derek Marcotte of Wüsthof explains herappeal this way: “Jill is unique in herability to not only come up with ideasfor an event or promotion but to executeit with precision, tying in every angleshe can for maximum success. She usesus, as a supplier and expert in our field,for all the tools we have available at herdisposal.”

He goes on to say “she engages herclients at all levels, from flyers tonewsletters to web and email blasts, andthe social media machine. Most impor-tantly, she gets behind each event oridea with such enthusiasm and vigorthat everyone around her, especially thestaff, gets on board 100% to make it allcome together perfectly.”

Jill acknowledges that the web has af-

Above: Jill started her career selling gour-met vinegars and oils at the Covent Gar-den Market. Specialty foods and local fareare still amongst her most popular items.Below left: Cooking classes are held regu-larly in the kitchen at the back of the store.

38 JULY  2012

Retailer Profile: Jill Wilcox

fected all areas of her business, includ-ing the vendor/buyer relationship. “Ithas been the single greatest changesince I started,” she says, “and it’s most-ly for the good, especially for the order-ing process. I can now do everythingonline, from viewing vendor cataloguesto placing my orders. But that couldhurt our industry because some compa-nies are no longer hiring sales reps.”

Depending on their retail customersto order online may help vendors keepcosts down, but Jill worries about how itwill affect the relationships that havehelped build her business. For onething, she says the orders certainlywon’t be as large.

“The old-fashioned, face-to-facemethod is still the best way to sell,” saysJill, “and I’m concerned about the direc-tion some vendors are taking. We havealways had the same core values – re-spect, trust, loyalty – that have kept ourrelationships strong and successful.”

Vendors count, but Jill knows that inorder to provide exceptional customerservice, you must have exceptional staff.She believes well-trained, well-in-formed employees give independentsan edge in today’s marketplace and shetrains her staff very well.

“Whenever I bring in a new item,whether it’s a gadget or a food item, Igive it to all my colleagues to try it ortaste it,” Jill explains. “I devote atremendous amount of time to ensuringthat we can always answer the cus-tomer’s questions. I want my staff toknow what they are talking about andalso to know how to service the cus-tomer from the minute they walk in thefront door. We don’t just sell products,we offer advice and cooking tips andpractical instructions.”

Store employees know that Jill’sTable is a great place to work, with loyalcustomers and a boss who truly appre-ciates them – and shows it. She pro-vides a range of incentive programsthrough suppliers and an attractive dis-counting program. Jill thinks it’s impor-tant they do things as a group so sheregularly brings employees to fund-raising breakfasts or holds staff parties.And everyone gets to join her on at least

“It’s not just the younger customers who follow Jill on Twitter. We have one

80-year-old customer, Archie,who has shopped at Jill’s Table for many years. He follows her on twitter and believes Jill is sending theemails directly to him.”

– Heather Carey, Store Manager (right)

one trade show trip each year.Respect and courtesy are also shown

to Jill’s London competitors, KingsmillsDepartment Store and Kiss The Cook,with whom she remains friendly. Theyoften refer customers back and forth astogether they try to promote shoppingin London’s downtown core, which isundergoing a rejuvenation.

With her business thriving, it’s prob-ably time for Jill Wilcox to take a break.But for this Martha Stewart of London,Ontario, there is no time for relaxing,even though her husband (a former FreePress editor) retired two years ago. InApril she established the Jill WilcoxFoundation. It will be officiallylaunched this September, but it’s some-thing that is very close to her heart.Known for her generosity (she evenfunds a scholarship at her old highschool for students studying culinaryarts), Jill will operate the foundationseparately from the store, but there willbe links. The mission statement will re-flect that of the store, focusing onwomen and children in the community.

“This is a big step,” she says with typ-ical modesty. “But we’re so proud ofthis foundation. I believe it’s the spring-board for the next stage in my career de-velopment.”

She has worked six and seven days aweek for over a decade and is now try-ing to take Sundays as well as Mondaysoff, but even at her busiest, Jill alwaysmanaged to make it home each night to

prepare a good meal for her family,which includes four sons and a grand-son. And as all store owners know,maintaining the daily pace, especially inthe hectic fourth quarter, can be ex-hausting. But Jill seems to thrive on it,motivated by the freedom and flexibili-ty her job provides, and also by the de-votion of her customers and followersacross the city.

“Jill pays attention to detail and offersthe best customer service anywhere,”says Margaret Alsamgeest at Browne.“But she also takes time to get involvedand help her community in so manyways. She and her team have providedmeals for local groups such as RonaldMcDonald House. Kind and consider-ate, she has always been a pleasure towork with.”

Her passion and enthusiasm for herjob is infectious.

“I love my customers, I love the peo-ple I work with and I love my commu-nity,” she says with a smile. “We knowso many of our customers by name, it’slike a family. There’s nothing as reward-ing as seeing groups of people chattingin the store on a Saturday. It helps thatwe’re right across from Covent GardenMarket, which is such a wonderful, so-cial way to shop and engage people.”

To that end, Jill believes there couldone day be a backlash against the inter-net as consumers realize that it’s such acold, impersonal place to shop – thecomplete opposite of Jill’s Table. n