A Shopping guide to Bradford on Avon's mainly owner-run, very individual shops, which make shopping here a joy that can produce some unique finds.
However, there is the Bath Christmas Market, which is not to be missed. That said, Bath is so busy that you will be dying to return on the train to the calm of Bradford on Avon...
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"Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know about shopping in Bradford on Avon". Bo Derek
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However, there is the Bath Christmas Market, which is not to be missed. That said, Bath is so busy that you will be dying to return on the train to the calm of Bradford on Avon...
Something for everyone
Everyone can enjoy the old fashioned and friendly service of Bradford on Avon's shops but get some of the latest products for your home, kitchen or wardrobe, some of them unqiue and hand-crafted. Bradford is also a magnet for the antiques collector, having several antique shops and a monthly antiques market. Including taking breaks in the cafes and maybe a health and beauty treatment, you could quite easily spend two days on shopping in the town. It's not just about shopping either. Shops, especially independents, give a barometer of a place and its character and visiting these is a way of getting under the skin of the place. It's worth it for the sheer pleasure.
True shop-oholics might need an injection of the hard stuff. Help is very close at hand just 15-20 minutes away by train or car in Bath, or 30-40 minutes away in Bristol.
This page takes you shopping in Bradford on Avon street by street. For a shopping guide by category, go to the Tourist Information Centre's (TIC) very helpful link here:
Money
There are two holes in the wall on Church Street at the HSBC Bank and Lloyds Bank. There is also the Stroud and Swindon Building Society at 36 Market Street.
Where to start
Hopefully, if you have a particular shopping objective, then this or the TIC's guide will help you to decide where to start. I am going to send you up Silver Street. This is left at the bottom of Coppice Hill and up the hill as far the Moxhams antiques shop it turns into Woolley Street.
Silver Street
Silver Street is at the bottom of Coppice Hill, going up on the left. The cafes, pubs, restaurants and estate agents are fairly prominent on this street and are covered elsewhere.
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Ruby Wines An independent wine merchant - great for picnic lubrication. A local brew is excellent for rewarding the cat-sitter too. Owner Rob will be only too pleased to advise you on his best wines and there are glasses in the room at Quince Cottage if you want to take a bottle to your Bradford on Avon 'home'. |
"In victory, you deserve champagne, in defeat, you need it". Napoleon |
"When there is plenty of wine, sorrow and worry take wing." Ovid
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Silver Street Pharmacist
Silver Street Pharmacist is a very well stocked chemist and has a good range of beauty products and good advice and help for any surprise ailments while on hols.
Spirit Fashion
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Spirit Fashion have four fashion boutiques in Wiltshire. It is a must for
the fashion conscious and anyone who enjoys stylish and chic clothes,
bags, shoes, belts and jewellry. It has leading designer labels and
some very unusual ones too. Lisa and her team provide a very personal
service. Check out all those designer names in this very hassle-free
clothes shopping venue. |
"I like my money right where I can see it - hanging in my closet".
Sex and the City |
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Bay Tree Interiors If you are fairly local then Julia at Bay Tree Interiors will be only too pleased to help you with your interior soft furnishing needs, examples of which can be seen in my home. If you like shabby chic, French or Scandinavian styles, her hand-made cushions are a must. |
"There is no excuse for doing anything which is not strikingly beautiful". William Morris
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Moxhams Antiques
At no. 17 Silver Street you will find Moxhams Antiques. This is a serious
antique collectors outlet, specialising in Georgian artefacts and
furniture. Here you will find a Queen Ann Oak chest at a mere £7,000 or
thereabouts. At the other end of the spectrum are small ceramic antiques. This and other stunning pieces to adorn your home are also on their
website. click here.
Objects seen at Moxhams will very likely of the type that will have furnished the homes of
Bradford on Avon's exceedingly wealthy merchants, so just for historical interest it is well worth
peering through their window. There is plenty more upstairs to be tempted by..
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Neston Park Farm Shop and Cheese board
This is one to head for to fill the picnic basket. A wonderful
little shop with great service! The sausage rolls and hot Cornish
pasties are fantastic quality and great value for a snack lunch. It has an extensive cheese
selection too, many of them local and they produce the best salami from their own pigs. There is also a wonderful range of specialist chocolates and locally made, good quality fudge. It is well
worth stocking up on their delicious, home reared organic meats before you head back
home. You can click here to find out more about this shop and their bigger
farm-based shop nearby, which is also worth a visit for the cafe with views onto open countryside.
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Epictetus
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Browns Hardware Store "We shall neither fail nor falter, we shall not weaken or tire, give us the tools and we will finish the job" Winston Churchill
 I love this place. It's been going since 1856 and used to occupy the whole building and beyond. Barny has recently taken over and provides extremely helpful advice with his assistant Ben. It's just one of those lovely old shops with lots of useful things that you have been meaning to get for ages, if only you could find it! This includes a really good collection of baskets, storage containers, natural door mats and really funky gardening gloves. And if they haven't got it in, no doubt "that will be coming in on Tuesday"! |
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Genesis Charity Shop "Charity should begin at home but should not stay there" Phillip Brooks
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It's
well worth a rummage at the Genesis Trust charity shop for some great finds. And it's all for a good
cause, supporting those who are most in need, especially
the homeless and alcohol and drug dependent, in particular to reintegrate them into the community. If you are reading this prior to your trip, bring some items to donate to the shop. or go to their site and make a donation. |
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No 32 Interiors You will find large and small interior furniture and goods at No. 32, where their business is "style". This shop is that good it has featured on Grand Design and other programmes. You can definitely find something here that will fit into your suitcase to enhance your home. "One arrives at style only with atrocious effort, with fanatical and devoted stubbornness". Gustave Flaubert |
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Who Cares Whether you care or not, you can get some delicious and high quality organic and fair trade food, toiletries and drinks etc at this shop. Ask for their rose oil chocolate - it is a dream. Owner Chris certainly cares. She set up the business, trading ethically, to do her bit to create a better future for her children. It's another place to go to top up the picnic hamper - with lovely spinach and feta pastries and cheese pasties etc. The tomatoes here are wonderful. It's also worth a look at the notice board in the passage outside the shop to get a sense of the Bradford on Avon community. |
"It's difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato". Lewis Grizzard
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Bishopston Trading Company
There is more for those who like to shop ethically with The Bishopston Trading Company's "pioneering fair trade" outlet, one of about five in the South West. You can buy very colourful garments, sheets, appliqued cushion, duvet covers, jewellry and lots more. What you will get is good quality, organic, fair trade cotton that supports small communities in India.
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Quire You will find a great range of greetings cards and postcards at Quire and, of course the pens to write them with. This is a great shop for calendars featuring local beauty spots too. That's because, Alison, who runs it, is married to local photographer, John. She will tell you what quire means, although unlike me, you may already know. She has lived here for decades and knows almost everything there is to know about Bradford on Avon. There is the unexpected at quire too. A huge selection of teddy bears and other soft toys. Not at all my thing usually, but they are so good they warrant a mention. I even spotted some chunky kids knits from the wool of Alison's rare breeds at one time.
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"The word that is heard perishes, but a letter that is written remains"
Proverb |
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Giraffe and Me
Huge pleasure is to be had for those with children to buy for when you step into Giraffe and me, where you can buy very colourful, fairy tale, cute clothes, shoes, toys and wellingtons. It is well frequented by mums and kids. It's next to the Fat Fowl at the bottom of Silver Street. |
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The Shambles Back up the hill and round the corner from Fat Fowl (watch the traffic where the pavement runs out) is the famous Shambles. A meat market, in medieval times, it is now a jolly and bustling walkway of small shops and cafes where you will hear many Bradfordians greeting one another and stopping for a chat. |
Bloomfields fruit and veg stall
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First of all you come to the colourful Bloomfields. This is great to stock up on fruit for your day or picnic. If you arrive early in the morning at this shop, you will meet the tame black birds, each with their own name. Karen feeds these cherries and grapes "if I didn't they would just come and steal them". "Watermelon - it's a good fruit.
You eat, you drink, you wash your face."
Enrico Caruso
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Bathrooms at No. 5
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It's not easy to tuck a sink into your suitcase, but for those living more locally Nick and Natasha at Bathrooms at No. 5 can give you a very personal service to help you design your dream bathroom. "There must be quite a few things that a hot bath won't cure but I don't know any of them" Sylvia Plath |
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Tillions "Getting into the habit of switching a timer on will, I promise, save you from any number of kitchen disasters."
Delia Smith
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Tillions is a joy for kitchen lovers, where you will pick up all manner of utensils that you never knew you needed. All things things for your kitchen are spread across two floors. If you can't find what you are looking for, ask Caroline and her extremely helpful staff. If you already have everything you need in your kitchen, this is great for presents.
Herbert Marcuse
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Maples Deli "A gourmet who thinks of calories is like a tart who looks at her watch." James Beard
Maples is a well established and much-loved and well stocked Deli, selling artisan
breads and lots of delicious take-away foods. It's brilliant for
picnics and for finding an unusual gift for any foodie friends or
family. |
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Tudor News
You will find the usual stuff you would expect of a newsagent at Tudor News, along with an excellent selection of cards.
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"The measure of life is not its duration, but its donation". Peter Marshall |
Dorothy House Charity shop
Another great charity shop for a great cause: a local hospice in nearby Winsley. Your purchases here will help them to provide support to people who have been diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. If you are reading this prior to your trip to Bradford on Avon, do bring any good items you no longer use, however few or small, to donate. If you can't find anything to buy, you can always make a donation. |
The Post Office
When you go to buy your stamps here for your postcards, you can also buy balls of wool for knitting or a packet of biscuits! In fact, the product range seems to expand every time you go in there, and not with things you would expect to find in a post office.
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Fetch I don't even have a pet, so I only end up in Fetch when I absent-mindedly mistake it for the Post Office entrance. That's how I know they have truly funky stuff for pets. They are also environmentally friendly. It's fantastic for your holiday, birthday and Christmas present buying for loved ones with pets. It has a great online shop for later buys when you are back home. |
"If you think dogs can't count, try putting three dog biscuits in your pocket and then giving Fido only two of them." Phil Pastoret ...oh, and Fetch have a great range of dog biscuits! |
Elise
I have bought cosy slippers, a shopping bag and a purse from Elise. It has a mix of funky and leather bags and purses and other leather goods and a few clothes.
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"A book is a garden, an orchard, a storehouse, a party, a company by the way, a counselor, a multitude of counselors."
Henry Ward Beecher
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Ex Libris It is well worth a rummage, if only to enjoy the old book bindings and curious titles. You could purchase a copy of 'Filling Spaces' by Stan Hey, a crime novel featuring Bradford on Avon's own sleuth, Frank Brennan. Or how about Ghosts of Wiltshire', 'Peter Underwood's Favourite Tales of the Fantastical', 'Exorcism!' and 'Ghosts And How To See Them'?! Jim or Carole are experts at what sort of book will suit what kind of person and are helpful beyond the call of duty. I've stocked your B&B room with their books. Also, if you are reading this prior to your visit you could always bring your unused books for their second-hand book barn. |
"I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library."
Jorge Luis Borges
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Market Street
Once you have had a coffee break in one of the cafes, you can turn right out of the Shambles and up Market Street.
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Andrew Dando Antiques Andrew Dando Antiques is a family run business began in 1915. In 2002 Andrew Dando was awarded the ''Best specialist dealer' (Ceramics category) in the BACA'S (British Antiques and Collectables Awards) the first time that this award has been given to a ceramics dealer outside London'. It was also voted by the Independent as one of the top 50 antique shops in the UK. |
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"I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver." Maya Angelou
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The Olive Tree
Shopping at the Olive Tree, according to their blurb makes you 'sexy, glamorous and sustainable'. That's because you will find ethically sourced and UK designed gifts, ranging from a scented candle or soap, to beautiful silk cushions and woven baskets and other personal and home enhancing products. |
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Best Laid Plans If you are celebrating a grand occasion, then Best Laid Plans will give you a 'cuppa-cha' while you select designer stationery from their wide range. They can also do bespoke designs too. There is also a choice of gifts and cards. They have an online shop: |
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Artemis Gallery You can buy 17th to 21st century furniture and decorative items for your house, as well as help with your interior design at Artemis. |
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Piha Ski and Surf Shop Good casual adult clothing and sports wear can be obtained at Piha Ski and Surf. |
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Orton Jewellers On the other side of the road is Chris and Lee Orton at Orton Jewellers, where they design and handcraft stylish and original pieces of jewellery on the premises. "From modern geometric to delicate and floral, the most desirable pieces are still those which are handmade". They do repairs, commissions and restoration. You can also buy a good quality watch here. "I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond." Mae West |
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The Cobbler
You never know, you might need to get your shoes fixed while you are away. You can get your shoes repaired and keys cut at the bottom of Market Street - very handy.
Other shops on Market Street
There is a bridal wear shop and the health and beauty shops are on a page for that purpose.
Church Street
While one of the most beautiful streets in Bradford on Avon, and a route to St Margarets Hall and Barton Orchard cottage etc, Church Street is not a shoppers mecca. It mainly has banking, opticians and beauty outlets, which are covered elsewhere in this site.
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Neston Flowers If you want to send someone some flowers, then go to Neston Flowers on Church Street. "To be overcome by the fragrance of flowers is a delectable form of defeat." Beverly Nichols |
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St Margarets Street
Again, this is not a shopping mecca, and where there is anything of interest this is covered elsewhere.
It is worth noting that, just before you get to the train station, you will find a late-night and Sunday opening news agents come supermarket. However, St Margarets Hall hosts a really good little flea market on the last Saturday of each month, which is great fun. The bobbly chair in the bedroom was bought here, along with countless pieces of Edwardian glass.
Tithe Barn Crafts
The Tithe Barn Crafts can be done when you go to see the spectacular 15th century Tithe Barn, along with the other shops there. Here's a link to them.
This area is much more enticing than I am able to demonstrate without pics, which I will add later.
One of my favourite of the studios is Jane Robinson's, where she crafts various unusual trompe d'oeil products of her own, as well as displaying a very interesting range of jewellry, scarves and other home products.
I have also bought antiques from the corner restoration studio, in particular quirky chairs, which you might be able to tuck into the boot of your car. There are much more easily transportable antiques inside the shop. A really nice guy runs this, who you will see rubbing beeswax lovingly into the old wooden furniture he is restoring. He has a slightly territorial Jack Russell for company.
Spread across three barns, Granary Trading has a range of house accessories, furniture, gifts and garden items. It's very nice to browse around.
If you take the path to the canal and turn left towards the Frome Road, there is also a very lovely gift centre, including more home accessories. It's called 'By the Way'.