Morning! I hope you are all well today and I hope my friends further north don't suffer too much disruption today due to the heavy rain causing flooding. Yesterday on Twitter I got involved with a chat started by Maryann of One Stop Pamper Shop about how the increase in sales of handmade goods is affecting the high street. The main question being did we think that because more and more people are choosing to buy beautiful handmade products would this see a rise in independant retailers filling the empty shop fronts on our high streets?
White Christmas Creamer from One Stop Pamper Shop
Personally I think the trend to buy handcrafted goods is still very much on the rise and believe this can only be good for independent retailers. The Telegraph and Mary Portas are championing independent shops at the moment in their 'Best Small Shops in Britain' awards, inviting us all to vote for our favourite local shops. I know more and more high streets are becoming an eclectic mix of indie shops and the mainstay big retailers which can only be good for the creative industry. Whilst some designer makers also hanker after owning their own beautiful shop stocked with their own and other designers products, there are also other people determined to stock handmade products in their shops.
Flouncy Clutch from Poppy Treffry
Without independent reatailers sharing handmade products in their high street stores it may seem that designer makers products are destined to the cyber shelves only. However there are several creatives who have sucessfully taken the big retailer route and have also managed to keep their businesses relatively small and close to their homes. Obviosuly Poppy Treffry is the perfect example of this as her products are stocked by many big businesses including Selfridges. Yet Poppy also has a small shop close to her studio and she has kept her studio close to home, in Cornwall and Poppy still runs her own stand at Country Living Christmas Fair.
Mummy Birthstone Necklace from Poppy Sparkles
Another thought shared yesterday in this discussion on twitter came from Viv, at Poppy Sparkles, that the popularity of crafting was also making people think more about their purchases. After many years of a creating a throw away society I think the corner has been turned and more and more people actually want to know who made their new purchase or where it was made. Could we be seeing people actually embracing handmade products? Yes, I genuinely believe that the rise in popularity of crafting is making more people buy handmade. We all know that we cannot make everything ourselves so as designer makers we look to other talented makers to buy the things we cannot make ourselves. Then for the people who simply do not have time to make things but want to support British craft are looking to independent retailers to stock handmade goods.
What do you think? Will we see a rise in independent retailers on the high street stocking handmade goods? Do you own an independent shop that sells handmade products? I would love to hear from you, in the comments below or email me zoeanddrew@btinternet.com
Hope you have a fab day!
Zoe
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