Chloe Wright, 25-year-old owner of The Haberdashery in Dunfermline, says she often gets mistaken for a waitress.
She’s not surprised, though, given how young she is to head up the business, alongside her partner Kristopher Boniface.
“It sometimes bothers me,” Chloe admits, “but then I’ve got to remember that it is an unusual thing.
“I still get called ‘pet’ or ‘darling’ by the customers.
“My mum works here at the weekend sometimes and everybody assumes that she owns the place.
“Quite often I get mistaken for a waitress, and sometimes I just want to tell them ‘I’m not just a waitress’.
“But I do see both sides. I know this is a bit out of the ordinary for someone so young.”
The Haberdashery Dunfermline owner, Chloe, says ‘I still can’t believe it’
At just 25, Chloe studied to be a journalist before realising that she was enjoying her part-time job during university more than her actual course.
“I thought I’d just wasted four years,” she says, “when I could have been doing what I enjoy.”
Chloe started working in hospitality at 15 years old, and looking back to ten years ago, she struggles to believe where she is now.
“I’d never ever have thought at 15 years old that in ten years time I’d be running my own place,” adds Chloe.
“I still can’t believe it.
“I still come into work and feel like a waitress sometimes, and then I’m like: ‘oh my gosh, I run this!'”
Kristopher, 40, and Chloe met while working together in Dunfermline, Kristopher, as a chef, and Chloe as bar manager.
While working in hospitality, Chloe soon realised that there were some things she couldn’t learn without doing it on her own.
“I think I kind of came to the realisation that if I wanted to learn the accounting, the payroll and things like that, those quite rightly are things that business owners want to keep to themselves.
“I realised I was never really going to learn the ins and outs until I just did it myself.”
Chloe and Kristopher started viewing businesses, and when they came across The Haberdashery in Dunfermline, it was love at first sight.
“We just fell in love with it and it was sort of like: ‘let’s put all of our eggs in one basket and just go for it’,” says Chloe.
“What is there to lose at this point?”
Chloe wondered: ‘What if nobody takes me seriously?’
But despite the thrill of taking on The Haberdashery, there have been nerves along the way for Chloe.
“When we first opened,” Chloe says, “a big fear of mine was that nobody would take me seriously.
“That they’d think I was too young, or that I didn’t have enough experience in the industry, or I didn’t have this and that.
“That was a huge concern of mine.
“So when we did open, I made quite a point of being quite stern, especially with suppliers. Just when signing contracts, so that nobody would take the mick [out] of me.
“Because you get in your head about it, and it does scare you and make you nervous.
“And that’s probably the worst thing for it, because then you do come across as inexperienced.”
‘When it’s your place, it’s so different’
In December 2023 – just after opening – there was a week when Chloe and Kristopher worked 96 hours each.
But it’s Chloe’s love of the job – and having her man by her side – that helps her overcome any stress.
“It’s a lot, but when it’s your place, it’s so different,” says Chloe.
“When I think about working 60 hours a week for somebody else, I just wouldn’t do it.
“But when it’s your own place, and the people are excited, and enjoying the food, the adrenaline gets you through.
“That fast-paced adrenaline rush you get during a busy service, and you’re producing your product and people love it? It’s a great feeling.
“That, and lots of coffee!”
“I want to give a wee shout out to my man, Kris,” Chloe adds.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do it without him, I really wouldn’t.
“He’s just the calm to my storm sometimes and he works so hard.
“We make such a strong team.”
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