RD1: Brand new menswear store makes a splash in Hastings Town Centre
Mickey Whiteman, owner of brand new RD1 Clothing on Havelock Road, tells Let’s Do Business Finance about his journey starting his own business with the help of a Start Up Loan.
A far cry from what was once an estate agent premises along Hastings’ Havelock Road, Mickey Whiteman and Harry from RD1 have transformed the space into an aesthetically pleasing and trendy nook, complete with rustic wood flooring to complement their wall-to-wall stock of high end menswear brands.
Positioned a stone’s throw away from the centre of Priory Meadow Shopping Centre, RD1 is an independent contemporary men’s clothing store, and fills Hastings’ need for a store that caters to men that want clothing that reflects their personality and taste. A switch-up from the roads previous line of estate agents, passers-by can’t help but to stop and look in the window, and take in the thoughtfully arranged and new fashionable stock on show.
Boasting a list of globally sourced and UK menswear brands, the store provides styles that aren’t otherwise available in the town. Covering sizes from Small to 4XL and stocking brands from Lyle & Scott, Lee Jeans, Fila Vintage with more continuously being added to their repertoire, RD1 can cater to everyone no matter their build or size – and if it isn’t in stock in store, their new top quality website is offers speedy delivery and a sleek experience.
Owner Mickey Whiteman had 14 years of experience working for similar brands, from another in Hastings to down in Southampton. Living in Hailsham but having family based in Hastings, he’d given a lot of thought over the years to eventually launching his own business, but with his own spin that reflected his personal style.
“I worked in menswear shops for 14 years, and from that I picked up a lot of experience of what works and what doesn’t, and what I wanted to do. I learnt from all of those and got my own ideas, and so I had a good foundation for starting my own.”
Mickey teamed up his friend and old colleague Harry to bring RD1 to life. Tag-teaming on the store opening hours, they’ve aimed to create a space with RD1 that places an emphasis on a personal and attentive customer service to whoever walks in the door – exuding quality from that first peek in the window, to taking your new quality goods home.
Unravelling the plans for RD1
The seed for his own business planted years before and nurtured through his working in similar stores, in 2021, Mickey had decided to break away and take the leap to start his own; RD1. After doing his own research into support available for starting his own business, he came across Let’s Do Business Group and the CHART programme on social media.
After toying with the idea and drafting a business plan, Mickey felt confident that his business idea could be a success one day. He decided to get in contact with Let’s Do Business Group, and after laying out his plans with business manager Emily Wright, he got the ball rolling.
“I always wanted my own business doing this, and I knew it would come one day. About a year ago I started looking into it properly. I spoke to chart and ldbg, to see if it could happen, to get information on funding and seeing how I could do it.As soon as I started a business plan, I thought that the idea could work, so I just threw myself at it.”
Through the support he received, he was able to get information on the feasibility of his business, and how he could make it work in Hastings. Mickey decided to apply for a Start Up Loan through Let’s Do Business Finance, and was able to secure £25,000 to enable him to lease the Havelock Road premises and jump start the beginnings of his brand
On his experience applying for his Start Up Loan, Mickey said:
“The communication and support I got when I was applying for the loan was excellent - I had to get used to the process, as it was all new to me, but Emily was great and gave me a lot of help.
I also got help looking over all the financials and forecasts, so I felt confident that I could make it work.”
Setting a trend
Now that RD1 is open and ready to welcome customers, Mickey hopes that it can evolve into a destination store and put Hastings on the map for high end menswear. There’s hopes that the new business will spur further regeneration of the town to compliment the revival that’s been seen on the high streets of Hastings and St Leonards on Sea in recent years, and the new independent store will inspire more new businesses to follow suit and move into the town centre as more big-name brands move out.
“The personality of Hastings and St Leonards is what it has going for it, so a store like this can work perfectly. There’s a lot of potential, and hopefully some more businesses will follow what we’re doing, and Hastings will get some more life put into it”
With many businesses teetering on the edge of skittish due to uncertainty in the UK economy this year, Mickey recognised that starting a new business amongst rising energy bills was a risk, but remains hopeful for the future of the RD1 and believes that they’ll see it through, and that Hastings is still the perfect place for a budding new enterprise.
“There’s a lot of support in this town from people like Let’s Do Business Group and Locate East Sussex, that are trying to get things going for businesses. I know that everyone is a bit skittish about opening or taking a chance at the moment, but hopefully we’ll see the next 6 months through and things will pick up in the future.”
Both Mickey and Harry are working behind the scenes to get the RD1 name out there on social media, and are planning to scale up their operations as they build their customer base in the town as well as on their website by creating new brand partnerships and adding new items to their stock, with hopes to add a footwear range in store in the next few months.
Phil Pocock, a business manager for Start Up Loans at Let’s Do Business Finance, said:
‘Mickey approached us for funding under the Start Up Loan Scheme earlier this year to assist with his plan to open a shop in Hastings town centre selling high end menswear and it was a pleasure to work with him as his designated Business Manager. Together, we were able to fine tune his Business Plan and financial forecasts and his previous experience, the research he had undertaken and his great enthusiasm for wanting to run his own business really stood out and helped us to reach a positive decision in agreeing his loan request.’
All of the team at Let’s Do Business Finance wish Mickey and RD1 every success in his new venture.
RD1 is open 7 days a week at 42 Havelock Rd, Hastings, East Sussex, TN35 1BE, and offers next day delivery from their website. Visit their website at https://rd1clothing.co.uk/ or follow them on Instagram
