Well that was what this blog was supposed to be…..
Mr RMM had a bread-making course at the wonderful Bertinet Kitchen in Bath so it was time for a long weekend away. Now when a Retail Marketing Maven finds herself idle in a city what else is she to do but shop?
I set out on Saturday morning expecting the same old retail mix you see in every town and planning to critique the cities retail stores. Regular readers will know that I am a fussy, opinionated cow *shuffles feet at the size of the understatement*. Therefore I was expecting to find an over supply of shops that I felt where either bad or truly dysfunctional.
To my delight, the retail offering in Bath is really rather good. You will find pretty much every familiar high street name you could desire and and excellent mix of independent boutiques and artisan suppliers. I could easily have stuck to my original topic - but I felt that would be churlish given my overwhelming delight at the days shopping.
So here are some of my favourite finds.
Instant Vintage is the brainchild of Poppy Harman and Husband Andy, evolving from stalls at Portobello and Spitalfield Markets. Merchandise is centred around vintage inspired fashion and homewares. I loved the attention to detail, the quality of the execution and their tightly defined niche. My normal retail pet hates, things like dirty shops/fitting rooms , OTT signage and off-brand digressions were totally absent - how lovely.
Grasse was launched in July 2009 by Joanne Davies and is inspired by Grasse, in Southern France. The collection of home and garden products varies on a monthly basis around a solid core of exclusive products. I loved the strong brand identity and, as with Instant Vintage, the quality of the execution and attention to detail.
Susannah is a vintage wonderland, wavering on the knife edge between being truly dysfunctional and utterly endearing .
It breaks all the basic rules of good retailing, for example, the volume of merchandise makes it nearly impossible to move. Even worse, for the entirety of my visit there was not a single member of staff in the store. I found lovely things I wanted to buy, but there was no one to take them out of the window and the cash out of my wallet. Despite these obvious flaws, or perhaps in part because of them, I love it anyway.
The Fine Cheese Co is a maturer, wholesaler, retailer and exporter of artisan British cheeses, most of which are unpasteurised and all of which are traditionally made. Food lovers should embark on a pilgrimage - you will not be disappointed!
The attached cafe is less successful - much more shabby than chic and the staff were doing it no favours on my visit. The food, is of course, wonderful.
In addition to visiting the above, don’t leave Bath without;
A men’s tweed jacket circa 1920’s or ‘old lady’ Ostrich leather bag from Vintage to Vogue; THE place to go for nearly new designer, vintage and one off quirky pieces.
A visit to George Bayntun, fine bindings and rare books. More a museum than a store, with a wonderful collection of second hand and antiquarian books. Enthusiasts could easily spend all day here and part with upwards of £5,500 for just one book.
Shopping at every conceivable high street multiple in the new Southgate shopping development.
Staying at The Townhouse; located on the edge of The Circus in the heart of Georgian Bath and just a hop, skip and jump from the centre of Bath. An excellent boutique B&B.
Never have I had such a wonderful day perusing the shops,
Becki Rowe
