Caché La Boutique riviera-style fashion shop in Elland: Radio broadcaster Liz Green on what she has learned about Yorkshire fashion shoppers

“This is the psychology of shopping,” she says. “It is how we perceive ourselves, our attitudes to our bodies - and sometimes what our companion thinks.”

Liz left the BBC last year after a 32-year career in Leeds and Yorkshire regional radio. She was the first woman to solo-present a local radio breakfast show, and was twice named Yorkshire Personality of the Year. She began thinking about opening her own shop after missing shopping during lockdown. Holidays in the South of France had inspired a love of French style, and she wanted to bottle a nostalgic, chic look and bring it home to Elland, with lots of choice for mature women of all sizes.

Caché La Boutique can be found in a swish shopping location within a conservation area not far from the Elland Mill complex. It offers fashion for year-round style, not just sun and sea, and most of the labels are French.

Last month, Caché marked the new season with an in-store fashion show modelled by Liz’s Yorkshire celebrity friends. Many customers have also become friends and Liz has learned much about fashion shoppers since she opened. “This is the psychology of shopping,” she says. “It is how we perceive ourselves, our attitudes to our bodies - and sometimes what our companion thinks.”

Here are some of the shopper types she has met in-store:

The last-minute dasher. “A woman will burst through my big pink door with panic in her eyes. She is going to a wedding/funeral/party, usually that day or next,” Liz says. “She has put off looking for an outfit. I am her last hope. She doesn’t enjoy shopping for clothes. With luck, after a panic session, she gets what she needs. I have had women crying in relief.”

The “I hate my body shopper” - Liz says: “I am very familiar with this woman. She has gained weight, maybe menopausal or unhappy - in her head, she is still the size 10 of her youth. We share which bits of our bodies we hate. They usually are the same - bellies, arms, leg shapes. They don’t want baggy clothes. My challenge is to show them they can look amazing without stepping out of their comfort zone. Having been overweight before I had diabetes and dropped to a size zero, I know how many of us feel.”

The “Never Too Old” shopper: “I have several elderly but fabulous clients. For them, colour, shape, being bodacious, is paramount. One is a very sprightly 90 years old. The first time she came, she was in her trousers and a jumper. She left Caché with the most fabulous coloured frock. Move over, Iris Apfel. Never prejudge age or style.”

The spy shopper: “This was astonishing to me,” says Liz. “Rival retailers and their clients being sent in to check prices and labels. They don’t look you in the eye and are furtive. I close-manage them with kindness and inane chat. They soon leave. It’s flattering they need to check me out. I should hand them a pen and paper to take notes.

"Not everyone in the world of clothes retail is decent. Many great boutique owners I support and have good relationships with say it’s a problem for them, too. They try to block suppliers too. Some may be feeling vulnerable because of competition. Shame.”

The bad-mannered shopper: “I have had very few women (thankfully) who assume staff in the boutique are the lowest of the low. They talk as if we are not there, usually pejorative comments about stock or showing off about where they usually shop.

"I had one woman throw a hat down on my desk without saying a word. I had to keep my mouth closed as I wrapped the hat. She threw cash down, snatched the bag and strolled out. No wonder staff in retail feel undervalued. Clients such as her are going to erode anyone’s self worth. Their own must be pretty low to behave like that.”

The couple shoppers: Liz says: “I have 30 seconds to decide to whom I am selling. If it’s the male partner, he may actually pull the outfits he wants her to try. He will sit on the sofa and score her appearance. Other male partners will be there very reluctantly and not want their other half buying a frock. Watching them dissuade her can be heartbreaking if she looks lovely. I have learned to say nothing. Harder to be silent is with a pair or friends when one of them clearly doesn’t want the other to buy an outfit she may look sensational in. They usually leave empty-handed.”

The “Alan Bennett, where are you?” shopper: “I have heard great monologues from ladies, classic comedy. From one who stood at my door but didn’t come in asking if I sold ‘knee highs’ to stories of the ex husband and one memorable day when a woman, going to a funeral, gave me a scathing but hysterical summary of the deceased.”

Caché La Boutique is at 68-70 Huddersfield Road, Elland, and at Cacheboutique.co.uk, Facebook @CacheLaBoutique

The new friend shoppers: “Such a joy,” says Liz. “Women who love your clothes and you enjoy their company. Such a diversity of women with interesting lives and lifestyles. They know what they like and are happy to try different things - they know being here is about having space and a safe environment to play with outfits. I have clients who buy online from the USA and nationwide who have become virtual friends.

“When I opened Caché, someone said, in a warning voice, ‘You will have to be all things to everyone.’ She was right, but that’s what makes running a boutique such a joy.”