A FOREST of Dean business has marked a significant milestone of ten years on the High Street on Monday, April 6.

Casa Interiors in Newnham opened its shop doors on Wednesday, April 16, 2016, but had been operating as a full time interior design and home staging business since 2014.

The business was started by Paula Farmer, who began with a home office and wanted to prove that interior design can be done on a budget. She started by reusing and painting furniture, which eventually outgrew her space at home.

Paula said: “Originally, I was just looking for a place to store my furniture, and via a family friend, the place I’m in now came up and I ended up with the shop.

“Initially I just started selling my painted furniture whilst still doing interior designs and home staging - and I had five local artisans who sold their work through me, just to bulk it out as it was quite a big space just for me. It kind of went from there!”.

Over the ten years, the shop has morphed and now offers a variety of homewares and giftwares, but continues with its roots of interior design and home staging services. In this time, many shops in Newnham closed with customers asking if Casa Interiors sold certain items - prompting Paula to bring in new items which were requested.

Paula said: “Since covid, a lot of people are more appreciative of the local bespoke items, whereas years ago, they may pick something up, see it was handmade and put it back down.”

Local artisans still have their work showcased in Casa Interiors, which is one of many reasons why the shop is important to the community. However, the shop proves to be critical to everybody within Newnham and the greater Forest of Dean community.

Paula explained she has regular customers who come and the interaction they have is an important area of their social life and wellbeing. Additionally, shops like Casa Interiors act as a way to keep the High Street and local economy alive.

During the coronavirus pandemic, many businesses turned their focus online and consumer behaviour shifted in turn. However, the criticality of a local shop cannot be understated.

As explained by Paula: “It’s so important for people to use local shops. Before we know it, we’re just going to have a High Street that’s just full of nail bars and takeaways.

“The more shops you have on the High Street, the more it encourages other shops. It’s a knock-on effect. If a shop becomes empty, footfall declines - and if another shop becomes empty, the footfall declines even more.

“I’d encourage people to use their local independent shops rather than the chains or online. You get much better service in a shop, you get to talk to a real person and you can see the item you’re buying.

“I enjoy what I do and that’s why I keep doing it. I enjoy my community and I’m very supportive of it.”

For more information on the business, you can find Casa Interiors on Newnham’s High Street or call 07446 436481.