Inside Out Clothing owner Cindy King said she started the business in North Rd, Northeast Valley, in 1999, but relocated to George St about two years ago.
The move was to allow the business a chance to expand by exposing it to a ''more transient'' customer base.
''The valley was a great start and it did me well but as we grew, we needed to grow our clientele.''
The students and out-of-towners visiting the George St shop helped it establish a client base from ''Bluff to Auckland''.
People sent the store clothing to sell on their behalf with the client receiving half the sale price.
Small businesses needed to evolve to survive in a ''tough'' retail market, she said.
''Dunedin is a great place, but it could do with another 50,000 people on the street to sustain the overheads.''
To ''capture'' the potential client base in Dunedin, she opened a second Inside Out store two weeks ago in the ''fabulously rejuvenated '' Exchange in Princes St.
''By spreading the business out we are trying to capture everyone so it becomes manageable.''
This week, the Princes St store was busier than the ''extremely quiet'' George St store.
''Sometime I look down the street here [George St] and I don't see a soul and I think `whoa'.''
The Princes St store stocked more corporate clothing and menswear to attract businesspeople working in the Exchange area.
The change had made her busier. She was working ''huge hours'' but hard work was necessary, she said.
''Retail is hard and you've always got to be coming up with some new concept to keep your head above water.''
Shoppers were thriftier than ever and the past winter had been the hardest ever for the business.
The outlook for retail was ''a bit scary'' and several retailers, across several sectors, shared the same sentiment.
''Everyone is nervous - it has been quiet. I think times are tough and you have to do what you've got to do to try and get through it.''
She was thankful to her ''loyal'' customers, who had allowed the business to survive, she said.
She also opened a shop in Thames St, Oamaru, six months ago and ''people have welcomed it''.
