Introduction to this (my first ever) blog.
Are you looking to discover the most special independant boutiques in the UK? If you are then you have come to the right place as I am too, and I am making it my mission this year to visit as many places in the UK as I can to discover as many of the incredible independant stores that I can find and share them here with you.
Who am I and why am I doing this?
I am Sophie and I own Cockatoo. Recently I have started to research into all the small independent boutiques around the UK. The reason i have decided to do this is that for the past few years we have been wholesaling Cockatoo to many shops and businesses around the UK (and also around the world!) through the online wholesale platform called Faire www.faire.com ...its an incredible platform that has transformed our business and the only downside is that you never get to meet your customers or get to know their shops as its all done online...SO every time I am going somewhere now, I try to stop in the towns/large villages that i pass to check out what shops are there and to visit any existing stockists so we can meet each other and put a face to the name.
I am also going to do specific road trips where possible to areas that we dont already have stockists so that I can see if I can find new shops that aren't online to stock too. Having spent alot of time online in the last couple of years googling the best boutiques in the UK I realised that its very hard to find a comprehensive list of brilliant ones, and from doing my road trips I also realised that there are so many that dont come up on Google searches, that need to be discovered in person so I have decided to make my own list, for myself but also for anyone else searching for fantastic boutiques in the UK so that you dont have to travel the length and width of the UK to find them yourself too! And also for the stockists themselves who work so hard to make their stores a success and who I know are always happy to be appreciated and discovered!
So here goes!! I am going to start with a stockist that we have stocked for a couple of years now and who is pretty local to where we are based, and who I FINALLY managed to visit last week when I was dropping off an order to her...and WOW what a shop and what an incredible person too!
SARAH STYLES
Near Hungerford, Wiltshire
A gem of a gift and interiors shop which I wish I had discovered sooner. Im not surprised that this beautiful shop, (which sits next to the Cobbs Farm Shop, just off the A4 outside Hungerford), filled with colour and joy and unique finds, sourced from around the world, is a runaway success.
Sarah is first and foremost a very talented florist but has also curated one of the most special gift and homeware shops I have ever been to. She has sourced many of the unique and stunning array of gifts and homeware on her travels, making her shop one that you will discover pieces that you wont find in every other gift shop too. Because the two retail spaces coexist with the floristry side of the business, her shops also smell out of this world! A whirlwind of energy and warmth, her stunning taste and creativity makes this boutique one of my top favourite finds.
https://sarahstylesflorist.com/