Trinity Arcade’s A1 Alterations celebrates 30 years of ‘good old-fashioned customer service’

A small business owner has credited her “love of fashion” and “good old-fashioned customer service” to the overwhelming success of her 30-year-old CBD alterations business.

Founded in May 1994, after taking inspiration from her own mother who worked as a dressmaker, Fiona Larkins started A1 Alterations from the ground up.

After selling her car — where she used its money to buy second-hand sewing machines at an auction — Ms Larkins took out a six-month lease in the CBD’s Carillon City Arcade.

“I just took the plunge. I started off with four machines, I hired one girl to work with me, I hung up my sign in Carillon, opened my door and cold called everybody,” she said.

“I just offered a point of difference, it’s basically good old-fashioned service and the fact that I love fashion, I think we kind of garnered a lot of trade just purely through that.”

But in 2021 A1 Alterations faced a blow after Carillon Arcade owner Dexus — who bought the arcade in 2016 — told most of the retailers they had to vacate by October 31.

Ms Larkins says her business was only given 30 days notice.

“It was like, you have got to be kidding me; 30 days after 27 years of business and not even a thank you for the services that you brought, there was absolutely nothing … it was sink or swim,” she said.

“We had 30 days to sign a lease, find a shop, outfit a shop, move eight machines — all before the Melbourne Cup.”

Whilst A1 Alterations was able to survive by finding a new home in Trinity Arcade — a mere 100m away — Ms Larkins said the relocation was the “biggest hurdle” the business had ever faced.

“Everything was on the line so when you’re pushed into a corner you’re 100 per cent focused on moving on,” she said.

“I didn’t want to let the business go, I needed to keep it going because people rely on us and there’s not many businesses around that you can come in and feel as though you’re a part of their family.”

In its 30 years of operation, Ms Larkins says she has seen the CBD morph from a bustling hub into a lifeless city centre.

“Unfortunately a lot of antisocial behaviour has started to come in, shops have started to move out and people are starting to not think about the city as a destination anymore,” she said.

“We have also had the onslaught of the major shopping centre redevelopment which has pulled away from the city because we can get everything under one roof … it’s a shame the city has not progressed and not kept in step with its changing environment.

“Sadly what we offer is unfortunately on the decline, we have a personal way of doing business rather than the impersonal way of shopping centres.”