Time in retail is over

She ran a timeshare antique shop in George St, Deniliquin from 1986, as well as selling textiles and linens at antique fairs.

Mrs Coote opened Country Cottage Antiques and Linens, which is now known as Blue Bird Bazaar, in Deniliquin in 1996.

In what would be her 25th year of operating the business, Mrs Coote will close the doors to her Napier St shop at the end of this month.

She said while she will miss seeing her customers regularly, now was the right time to retire.

‘‘I love it, but I’m getting older and I want quality of life. I don’t want to be dragged out of here straight to the hospital,’’ she said.

‘‘I would like to thank everyone who has supported my business over the years and I would encourage everyone to continue to support local businesses.

‘‘It is so important to shop local, as our local shops keep Deniliquin alive.’’

Interestingly Mrs Coote’s passion for retail did not start in Australia. Her first job in the industry was while travelling in London, England.

‘‘I started retailing when I went on an overseas trip to London in the late 1960s. A friend of mine worked in Carnaby Street, so I used to go and help them on the Saturday.

‘‘When I got back here (Australia) I went for a retail job and I’ve been in retail ever since.

‘‘I worked with three fashion outlets in Melbourne during the 1970s and I had my first shop in 1974.’’

Mrs Coote made the move to the local area in 1982, as her husband John wanted to grow rice.

‘‘We had property in Gippsland but he wanted to grow rice,’’ she said.

‘‘We were living out near Moulamein and now we live in town, here in Deni.

‘‘I used to drive about 80km into Deniliquin a couple of times a week and then I started doing antique fairs around the countryside.

‘‘As the children grew I just did antique fairs until we sold our property in 1996.

‘‘That’s when I opened the shop.’’

Despite retiring, Mrs Coote said she plans to stay quite active when the business closes.

‘‘I’m going to go back to Tai Chi and will do some volunteering,’’ she said.

‘‘I’ll join U3A to keep busy as well.

‘‘We’re on five acres and by the time you get around to weeding the garden and cleaning out the cupboards you have a lot to do.’’