Finding an independent retailer who sells a wide variety of interesting and creative items can be a true delight. For the past ten years, the Arbery Emporium in 7 Arbery Arcade has brought together an incredible selection of artisan created items into one retail environment. As they say on their Facebook page: “If you’re looking for a one stop shop of creativity and uniqueness, Abery Emporium is the place to go!
Back in 2014, Gail Crowther and her daughter Sian opened a pop up shop in unit 10 of the Arbery Arcade. Initially they sold painted furniture which Sian and her friend Danni had transformed from boring items into something that customers wanted to have in their homes. Beside furniture, customers were also able to purchase antique bric-a-brac and handmade cushions which Gail had created. As the business grew over time, Sian moved on, and Gail’s husband Frank joined the furniture painting team. The Arbery Emporium continued to expand with more people joining the team, selling an array of up-cycled goods, beautiful glassware and artisan items.
When Gail retired in 2019, the decision was made to relocate to a smaller shop at No 7 and a new team came together. Helen Bolton took on the lease and name with help from Wendy Dobbenie from Wendy’s Mosaic Designs who had been part of the original team. Kerry Houghton from Kerry Houghton Glass Designs and Chrissy Morton from Taylors Boho Designs also got involved, soon followed by Wendie Jarvis from Ellington Interiors.
Just as the new business was getting established, the Pandemic hit. Although lockdown was a tough time for them all, with support from the team, they were able to keep Frenchic paint collections going. As we all emerged from lockdown, the ‘management team’ from Arbery Emporium decided to take on the next door unit as they wanted to give more local artisans the chance to rent space and sell their goods. Although the business has adapted, reducing the amount of painted furniture it sells, they are now able to support a wider range of local artisans making some incredible handmade items.
“Our ethos is that the goods we sell in the shop should be at least 90% handmade or up cycled,” says Helen. “Where ever possible, we do not duplicate crafts. The only thing we buy-in is the Frenchic paint. In May last year we suddenly lost Lorraine, one of our artisans and we felt we had to make something good come out of her passing. So, in September 2023, we decided to open up Arbery Emporium’s Crafty Bit on the Side in unit 8, selling both Lorraine’s huge craft stock and that of another lady who had sadly passed, enabling us to give funds back to their family members. We have supported many different artisans over the years, and we always try our best to advise them on products that are trending and provide sales tips, helping them where ever we can. We are always looking for new and unique artisans to join us and welcome anyone who wants to find out more about becoming a stockist to pop in for a chat.”
New stock arrives in to the Abery Emporium continuously and you will always find something unusual to purchase from mosaic work, gem stone jewellery, stained glass, felt creations, art works, an array of cards and a selection of upcycled furniture.
This year in July is the 10th Anniversary of Arbery Emporium.
“We are going to have a celebration weekend on Friday and Saturday 12/13th July from 10am till 4pm. Artisans will be demonstrating their skill in the shop and in the Arbery Arcade. There will be the odd glass of bubble to celebrate and for every purchase, we will enter the customer’s name into a raffle. The prizes are gift vouchers and items created by our artisans. We would like to invite old and new customers to come and join us.
Arbery Emporium is open Monday to Saturday from 10am until 4pm.
To find out more please visit facebook.com/ArberyEmporium
