Meet the winners of our first ever Independent Shop Awards
When we at House & Garden decided to put together our list of the 50 best independent design shops in the UK, we knew we wanted to single out a few of them for special mentions. These would be the shops that were the most creative, the most distinctive, and also the ones that did the most good in the world, whether that was through sustainability or supporting the communities they work with. Now, a month after the larger list came out, we've named our winners with your help – you voted in your thousands for the Readers' Choice Award.
This turnout for the Readers' Choice Award, and indeed for the nominations for the initial list, demonstrated one of the many reasons these shops are worth supporting. They're beloved by the people who visit them, and they're important parts of our local communities. They're the places we pop into to be inspired and to come away with something beautiful, and they're the places that make visitors think, ‘hey, this a pretty cool place to be’.
And they really do need supporting. Even many of the brilliant shops on our list of the 50 best are currently struggling as rents soar and the cost of living crisis continues to send shock waves through Britain's high streets. Sally Bailey, owner of Baileys Home Store in Herefordshire, has some use-it-or-lose-it advice for us, the visitors to the useful, unusual, individual shops that we search out or simply stumble upon. ‘If you’re coming into somebody’s store, how about just buying a bar of soap? Buy a card!’ Because, to coin a phrase: if not us, who? These shops won’t survive if we don’t support them. As we approach Christmas, what better time to drop in, buy something and help to ensure that these creative hubs continue to enhance their communities.
With that in mind, read on for the winners of our awards, from the shop of the year to the readers' choice.
1/7Independent Shop of the Year: Re Found Objects, Northumberland
In selecting for the Independent Shop of the Year award, we wanted to choose an homeware shop which gave a rare unique retail experience; one of those ‘woah, I didn’t know this was here’ moments. RE truly is one of those institutions. A large warehouse space unassumingly tucked behind a garage in the pretty Northumbrian town of Corbridge, it has the overall effect of a snake charmer. Glimmering cabinets of pressed glass, serried ranks of fish-shaped pegs and turtle padlocks, and baskets of multicoloured baubles heaped up like spices in a market.
For twenty years, the owners Simon and Jenny have been digging out and pulling together real retail gems, led mainly by their own vibrant tastes. They specialise in recycled, reclaimed and vintage pieces, but also have their own line of in-house designs manufactured all over the world. RE have been this writer’s first introduction to Mexican Milagros, marbled plastic buckets, American milk glass, and colourful string market bags - all of which have become simple style staples. Further up the luxury scale, their heavily scented candles in the shape of wax hands or feet are phenomenal, if gothic; and their tie-inspired silk cushions are chic indeed. It's hard to imagine a worthier winner.
2/7Lifetime Contribution Award: Baileys Home Store, Ross-on-Wye
“There are an awful lot of ‘stuff’ shops out there, selling things ‘you never knew you needed’ and you actually don’t need at all. Try to make yourself a bit different. Work with local makers. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, and help other people.” These pieces of advice to new or aspiring shop owners come from Sally Bailey, co-founder of Baileys Home Store. And Sally knows what she’s talking about. She and husband Mark set up Baileys in 1980, first selling architectural antiques and gradually expanding into pretty much everything for the home: upholstered furniture, lighting, home textiles, hardware and more. There are recycled bits, artisan made accessories and novelties from Japan.
Set within several old, converted farm buildings (a threshing barn, cowshed, stable, cartshed etc) in the rolling countryside of Herefordshire, there is also a tea room within a tin tabernacle. It’s open at weekends and is one of the aspects that makes it somewhere that is a pleasure to linger. Sally and Mark have weathered several recessions and seen tastes change (and come back round again) and right now they’re in a good place. ‘People seem to like rust and imperfect things again - lime plaster and interesting finishes.’ If that’s your vibe you’ll find plenty at Baileys Home Store.
3/7New Shop on the Block: Pascale Store, Norwich
It isn’t even three months old yet, but this new homeware and lifestyle shop in the centre of Norwich is already making quite the name for itself. ‘People seem to genuinely love it and we’re starting to get a few repeat customers,’ explains Pascale Smets, its owner and founder. It’s not exactly surprising: the former fashion designer has an extraordinary eye for detail and what it takes to live life well, which she has already demonstrated through an online store, a two and a half year stint at New Street Market in Woodbridge and a pop-up at Heal’s on Tottenham Court Road.
Like in all of these, her new shop offers a beautifully curated mix of ‘all the things that make daily living a pleasure’ – pretty enamel soap dishes, colourful soy wax candles, cookbooks, and a bright yellow lemon squeezer (it’s quickly become a best seller). ‘I wanted the products we sold to be chic, useful, lovely or all three,’ says Pascale. ‘Everything is something I’d like in my own house and I’ve tried to find the ultimate version of simple things, like the steel clothes pegs that we sell, which are made from a single stainless steel strip and are just brilliant.’
Her plans here were nothing short of ambitious. She bought the three-floor building – consisting of one 17th century townhouse, an 18th century townhouse and a charming 19th century shop front – in March 2023. ‘Things were so bad when we bought it and it’s taken an enormous amount of work,’ explains Pascale, recalling how it was in need of a whole new staircase before you could even contemplate opening a shop over more than one floor. ‘I just thought things can’t get worse and I think if you can make it work when things are bad, then hopefully you should be okay in retail,’ she adds with a grin. She’s now opened up the first floor too and plans are afoot to turn the top floor into a flat, inspired by the set up at Merci, one her favourite shops in Paris. ‘The first six weeks were nail-biting, but we’re settling into it now.’
4/7Sustainable Shop of the Year: Knepp Wilding Shop, Sussex
Running a shop that is truly sustainable is an enormous challenge. Opening one in the midst of a cost of living crisis and sticking to your values is even harder, which is why the Wilding Shop, sitting at the heart of the visionary Knepp rewilding project in west Sussex, is a particularly deserving winner.
‘Sustainability is the heartbeat of Knepp and the shop reflects this philosophy in every decision we make,’ explains Lia Brazier, Knepp’s Design Lead and the eyes behind the homeware and farm shop. It is an ethos that underpins every element of the shop – from the building itself, which was repurposed from an old barn and converted using sustainable materials, to the products themselves, which are meticulously selected according to whether they might be organic, recycled, local or fairtrade. ‘We choose suppliers who align with our principles, and prioritise working with independent makers, craftspeople, co-operatives, and certified B-Corps,’ explains Lia.
Alongside all of this, they sell a lot that is born out of Knepp itself: delicious produce, grown a couple of hundred metres away in the regenerative market garden, is key, but there is also a collection of furniture created in collaboration with Bill Amberg Studio, which is made from leather waste from Knepp’s butchery and ash die-back timber. Lia and the team hope to collaborate more, as well as offering workshops and Meet the Maker days. ‘Our vision for the Wilding Shop goes well beyond just being a place to purchase sustainable goods,’ she explains. ‘We want it to be a hub for learning and inspiration,’ she says.
5/7Social Impact Award: Prior, Bristol
What is really wonderful about the UK's independent shops is the way they can enhance the life of an entire community. When we first solicited nominations for our list of the 50 best independent shops, so many fans of Prior got in touch to nominate this brilliant store in Bristol. Run as a non-profit, the shop declares itself to be ‘a campaign for social good and retail transparency.’ Stocking goods from over 150 small, independent brands, founder Beck Prior has also made it her mission to support local makers and mentor other creatives in the Bristol area, as well as running workshops and events to bring the community together.
“My objective has always been to have an impact that goes beyond the four walls of the shop,” says Beck. “The creative community deserves real, practical support, and building connections between studios and customers is a way to spread prosperity and create real change in the corporate landscape of shopping malls.” The strategy has worked; the shop gets consistently wonderful feedback from visitors and people tell Beck they have come to Bristol especially to visit. “What I am most proud of however is how highly respected our interaction between customers, makers and retail is; we offer a cyclical system in which everyone feels nurtured and cared for.”
Like so many independent shops, Prior is currently struggling to afford its location (on Bristol's Cabot Circus), and needs all our support to help them afford their rent. Please stop by if you're in the area, or browse Prior's online offering at the link below.
6/7Specialist Shop of the Year: Woods Fine Linens, Harrogate
Located in the Grade II Victorian Prince Albert Row in Harrogate, the Woods Fine Linens shop gives the feeling of stepping back in time to an old-fashioned sort of shopping. It's old fashioned in the best sort of way where quality, expertise and service rule the day.
The Woods family have been producers and suppliers of fine linen since 1733, first opening a shop in 1895. This shop, set over several floors and now run by William Woods (the founder's grandson) is a treasure trove of the finest table and bed linen from the very best European names and mills as well as those exclusive to Woods.
There are also towels of every colour and description and all sorts of specialist household cleaning cloths, many made for Woods, from linen window cleaning scrims - for the perfect smear-free result - to the chicest of dusters imaginable in a blue and red check twill. Purchases are wrapped in brown paper and string to complete the step-back-in-time experience.
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7/7Readers' Choice Award: Alice in Scandiland, Cornwall
Having started out as a lifestyle blog about its owner's life and renovation story in Cornwall, Alice in Scandiland has always had one eye on its audience. Clearly the shop has made a name for itself in its home, the small town of Lostwithiel in Cornwall, where it occupies a charming sky-blue building on Fore Street. Owner Alice Collyer's love of interiors is easy to see from the beauty of the shop itself, which features elegant panelling, lovely hardwood floors, an inventive shingle wall and gentle paint colours. And that's before we even mention the wonderful selection of Scandinavian-inflected homewares, from stoneware mugs and teapots to ticking stripe cushions.
“Those that are able to visit in person appreciate the design of the shop, the attention to detail and how we like to set a scene & make you feel as though you are in a home," says Alice. "The truth is, you really are in a home, as the shop is at the front of my parent's house, who still live above and behind. The stockroom is my old bedroom, on the third floor!”
Alice's reach goes well beyond those who pass by, though, with a loyal online following – some who first followed her in the lifestyle blogging days, and others who are drawn in by her engaging Instagram account. Alice loves meeting her followers when they pop in, and it seems they love her back, as hundreds of them voted for Alice in Scandiland when we asked for nominations for the Readers' Choice Award. “The fact people choose to visit us, or shop online, time and again, making our products a part of their homes and daily rituals is a special privilege I will never take for granted.”
