What is your favourite shop in the UK?
Discussion
My favourite is this one in Malton, North Yorkshire, it's like Dr Who's Tardis when you go inside, seems to go on forever.
Always make a point of visiting when I'm in the area on holiday, could spend hours in there....I have no connection with the business btw.
https://www.yatesonline.co.uk/
I seem to have a thing for old fashioned traditional hardware shops, don't know why...
Always make a point of visiting when I'm in the area on holiday, could spend hours in there....I have no connection with the business btw.
https://www.yatesonline.co.uk/
I seem to have a thing for old fashioned traditional hardware shops, don't know why...
Edited by Wacky Racer on Sunday 29th December 16:36
Wacky Racer said:
My favourite is this one in Malton, West Yorkshire, it's like Dr Who's Tardis when you go inside, seems to go on forever.
Always make a point of visiting when I'm in the area on holiday, could spend hours in there....I have no connection with the business btw.
https://www.yatesonline.co.uk/
I seem to have a thing for old fashioned traditional hardware shops, don't know why...
West Yorkshire?! It's most decidedly North Yorkshire, and is where I go for a potter about, it has a lovely old worldly feel to it. Always make a point of visiting when I'm in the area on holiday, could spend hours in there....I have no connection with the business btw.
https://www.yatesonline.co.uk/
I seem to have a thing for old fashioned traditional hardware shops, don't know why...
Very geeky admission coming, but I love MonkBarModelShop in York. I used to go with my Dad to buy train track, and I could gaze at the trains and models for hours. http://www.monkbarmodelshop.co.uk/
I also like Halfords (ignoring the generic nature of it), it normally means new tools are incoming, or I'm getting some car cleaning stuff. I know it comes in for a lot of stick, but the tools are good and with a trade card it's quite cheap too.
Edited by Cocknose on Sunday 29th December 14:10
Local stores:
Stephen Lawrence - first went in as a grunger youth buying my first suit and pair of good shoes. Treated me like a gent, and have done for the near twenty years since.
Comics, Games and Coffee. Great atmosphere, superb stock of modern board games that have changed out family nights in, and I've made some great friends.
Also Through the Looking Glass for cool interior design stuff.
All within a 100m radius of each other off North Street, Chichester. Superb cafe there too.
Stephen Lawrence - first went in as a grunger youth buying my first suit and pair of good shoes. Treated me like a gent, and have done for the near twenty years since.
Comics, Games and Coffee. Great atmosphere, superb stock of modern board games that have changed out family nights in, and I've made some great friends.
Also Through the Looking Glass for cool interior design stuff.
All within a 100m radius of each other off North Street, Chichester. Superb cafe there too.
Fascinating about model shops being a feature of this thread!
Mine are all (long) shut.
Anyone remember Chuffs for 2nd hand model railway stuff, late '60s early '70s London. Specific enough ?
Music Man - records. Chippenham.
Trumps of Sidmouth - traditional grocers.
Tucker's Maltings - enormous bottled beer seller Newton Abbott.
Are markets allowed?
Pershore Retail Market - perhaps 5 years ago when it still had 2 butchers, a wet fish and 2 greengrocers.
Nearest to a favourite today:
Misty Bottle - whisky & beer. Broadford.
Mine are all (long) shut.
Anyone remember Chuffs for 2nd hand model railway stuff, late '60s early '70s London. Specific enough
?Music Man - records. Chippenham.
Trumps of Sidmouth - traditional grocers.
Tucker's Maltings - enormous bottled beer seller Newton Abbott.
Are markets allowed?
Pershore Retail Market - perhaps 5 years ago when it still had 2 butchers, a wet fish and 2 greengrocers.
Nearest to a favourite today:
Misty Bottle - whisky & beer. Broadford.
Thankyou4calling said:
Selfridges Oxford Street.
Hadn't been in Selfridges for years, and was looking for a tweed jacket (country do to go to) so popped into Selfridges.My word that shop had changed fo the worse. The menwear department I described to my wife as 'resembling an explosion in Lewis Hamilton's wardrobe' Horrible tacky, blingy expensive s
t. My jaw dropped looking at the stuff aimed at the Instagram lifestyle generation.Walked out of there shaking my head and feeling instantly older.
Not sure if the foid hall is still as good as it was when I was a kid, as we didn't hang around in there to find out.
Don't really have a favourite shop anymore, but it used to be Small Wonder Records in Walthamstow. Spent a lot of time in there as a kid.
In the UK, I always loved Selfridges - I could spend the whole day spending a lot of dosh in there.
In the US, I actually really like our local WalMart SuperStore. It's not too "People of WalMart" and there's always stuff in there I didn't know I needed until I got there. And the best thing - I can't seem to spend more than $150 there!
The other US store that is great is our local Ace Hardware store. It's not cheap, but it has everything you can imagine if you need one or two of something. Most of the staff are super helpful too.
In the US, I actually really like our local WalMart SuperStore. It's not too "People of WalMart" and there's always stuff in there I didn't know I needed until I got there. And the best thing - I can't seem to spend more than $150 there!
The other US store that is great is our local Ace Hardware store. It's not cheap, but it has everything you can imagine if you need one or two of something. Most of the staff are super helpful too.
I used to like old computer and games places like Silica Shop* when I was a child -- full of things that were unobtainable at the time.
Now, it's probably CostCo.
* Just did a google search out of interest: https://atariage.com/forums/topic/276553-silica-sh...
Now, it's probably CostCo.
* Just did a google search out of interest: https://atariage.com/forums/topic/276553-silica-sh...
Boring, I know, but John Lewis is up there. Fantastic service an price match guarantees with a no quibble refund policy.
I bought some red wine glasses online nearly 2 months ago and didn't like them. Forgot all about it and yesterday my wife took them back to our local store.
No problem whatsoever.
Another mention should go to my local Bingham Handicentre. For over 30 years we have never walked out of it without getting anything and everything (including alternative options) that we walked in for.
I remember once asking for a very particular size of screw and the Gentleman behind the counter (they are all Gentlemen there) pulled open a single small wooden draw (from many) and took two screws out of it, asking me if I preferred steel or brass!
It is also like a TARDIS as inside, whilst no one bothers you, there is always someone available to assist in every new found area (and it takes you back to another, better, time for such things).
Quite frankly I need to break more things just to go back there more often!
I bought some red wine glasses online nearly 2 months ago and didn't like them. Forgot all about it and yesterday my wife took them back to our local store.
No problem whatsoever.
Another mention should go to my local Bingham Handicentre. For over 30 years we have never walked out of it without getting anything and everything (including alternative options) that we walked in for.
I remember once asking for a very particular size of screw and the Gentleman behind the counter (they are all Gentlemen there) pulled open a single small wooden draw (from many) and took two screws out of it, asking me if I preferred steel or brass!
It is also like a TARDIS as inside, whilst no one bothers you, there is always someone available to assist in every new found area (and it takes you back to another, better, time for such things).
Quite frankly I need to break more things just to go back there more often!
WindyCommon said:
Guitar Village in Farnham.
Good call.For me it's Frailers guitar shop in Runcorn. A veritable Aladdin's cave of delight. www.frailers.com
Frank7 said:
For me it was always “Borders” book stores, the one in Islington was good, but the Oxford Street branch was better, there was a huge one on Park Ave. Manhattan, but I preferred the one on Second Ave., a little bit of the world died for me when “Borders” closed.
The one in Glasgow was great, weird how it just went, where the waifs and strays of Glasgow went for an all day free heat and a comfy leather chair after it closed is unknown, Waterstones got their custom probably.
vixen1700 said:
Hadn't been in Selfridges for years, and was looking for a tweed jacket (country do to go to) so popped into Selfridges.
My word that shop had changed fo the worse. The menwear department I described to my wife as 'resembling an explosion in Lewis Hamilton's wardrobe' Horrible tacky, blingy expensive st. My jaw dropped looking at the stuff aimed at the Instagram lifestyle generation.
Walked out of there shaking my head and feeling instantly older.
...
Was in there yesterday. My word that shop had changed fo the worse. The menwear department I described to my wife as 'resembling an explosion in Lewis Hamilton's wardrobe' Horrible tacky, blingy expensive s
t. My jaw dropped looking at the stuff aimed at the Instagram lifestyle generation.Walked out of there shaking my head and feeling instantly older.
...
100% agree. In the past I've bought loads in there. IIRC one bill was ~£300 on 6 or 7 T shirts! Couldn't find anything I wanted yesterday at all. And it's been like that for a few years too.
(In fairness that was the case in nearly EVERY shop I went in yesterday in Oxford & Regents Street)
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