She carried on whipping the still-settling post-decorating dust off the shelves she’d mounted all by herself on the wall behind her desk, now neatly stocked with boxes of 35mm film, before finally coming to a stop and sitting down in front of her new diary, spread open at today’s date. A glance confirmed what she already knew: nothing booked in for this morning.Maybe it wasn’t my best idea launching a new business in Stratford’s off season?Maybe Fran was right after all when he said photography studios have had their day? No, come on, Kelse. Positive thinking. The phone might ring any second now.
Expectantly, she watched her mobile for a few moments, before checking that the ringer volume was definitely turned up.
With a sigh, she conceded it was time. If she was ever going to establish some regular trade she’d have to make the phone call she’d been putting off in the hope that somehow word of mouth would be enough to signal her presence in town, but that hadn’t happened. She was going to have to part with some serious cash. She reached for her phone and dialled.
‘Is this the right number for placing adverts in your newspaper, please?’
‘Hold on,’ replied the brusque, harried man’s voice.
Kelsey listened to the sounds at the other end of the line, papers being shifted, rummaging and cursing, and a sudden triumphant, ‘Got it. You’d think you could find a pen in a newspaper office, wouldn’t you? Right, what do you want?’
‘Well, I need an eye-catching advertisement for my new business, please? But… I don’t have much money.’
‘They never do,’ the nasal voice said, cutting her off. ‘It’s fifty pence a word.’
‘Oh, OK.’ That didn’t sound too bad. ‘How about,Kelsey Anderson Photography, wedding and family portraits, school visits, passports and ID shots, theatrical headshots. Pets and kids photographed in your home or in studio.’
‘Address?’
‘What?’
‘Won’t your customers want to know where you are?’
‘I was just getting to that. It’s Second Floor, Corner Buildings, off Henley Street, Stratford. You’d better give my number as well.’
‘You think so?’
Kelsey stiffened her neck in response.Doesn’t this newspaper want my custom?There were other rival papers in the town, perhaps a little more respectable, with smart offices overlooking the town square or the river, but she had already called them both and their ads started at fifty quid for a black and white box somewhere in the middle pages beside the pets for sale and the lonely hearts, and she simply didn’t have money for ads people might not take note of.
It really should be a big announcement, a ‘new business in town’ sort of thing. TheStratford Examinerwas one of many freebie papers delivered to most residents whether they wanted it or not, and a pile was always dumped at the train and bus station every Friday, so Kelsey hoped it would reach just as many potential clients as the smarter papers. Still, this guy wasn’t doing much to reassure her of the paper’s professionalism.
Kelsey told the man her mobile number, crossing her fingers in the hope that sharing it with the world wouldn’t result in a barrage of cold calls about double glazing and PPI claims. The studio no longer had a landline connected; she had worried she couldn’t afford the bills, and Norma Arden’s clunky nineties phone was now wound up in its beige cables in the desk drawer.
‘Logo?’ the man barked.
‘Sorry?’
‘Do you have a business logo you want to include?’
‘Ahh, no, not really.’Dammit, another thing I’ve failed to sort out.She didn’t even want to think about how much hiring a logo designer might cost her.
‘That it?’ the man asked, sourly, and Kelsey heard the sounds of additions taking place under his breath accompanied by a nib moving scratchily across paper. ‘Seventeen fifty for a front pager. Will you take it?’
Kelsey gulped. ‘Yes, please. For eight weeks.’ It was an essential expense, and the other papers only had inside pages to offer, so this was an improvement, right?
‘One hundred and forty pounds. How do you want to pay?’
And with that, Kelsey parted with her money, using the business bank account she’d set up only the month before.
‘Processed. First ad will appear next Friday.’ And with that, the man hung up.
Kelsey was still shaking her head and looking at her phone in her hand when it rang.
‘Hold on, you’re a photographer?’ the same voice asked. ‘I might have some work for you. Cheap, are you?’
A moment of stunned silence passed before Kelsey stammered, ‘Competitively priced.’
‘If that means cheap, call in at the office. Today.’ She could tell he was about to hang up again and managed to quickly enquire who she should ask for when she arrived.
