A Royston businesswoman who will open the doors of her own pop up shop this Saturday said she wouldn’t have been able to do it without her trusted team of crafters.
Laura Whitford, who runs the craft fair each month in the town hall, will be selling a range of gifts, home decor, cards and crochet treats in her quaint new store No.3 Royston in Melbourn Street.
She said: “The shop is filled with products made by independent local crafters.
“They have all been so supportive since I started running the craft fair. They have been amazing and helped so much. It’s been a real joint effort.”
Laura said she couldn’t have risked the cost of leasing a lot of the shops in town, and it was by sheer coincidence that Stuart Hunter, who rents Hojana Social Care Staffing upstairs, wanted to sublet the shop unit.
She said: “I met him and the next thing I knew I was signing a contract.
“I’ve got the shop until the end of the year, but if people come in and spend some money in here then I can spend money on making it permanent.
“If people want it here, then they should shop local.”
After strict regulations were put in place which mean Laura is no longer allowed to advertise the craft fair each month with a banner outside the town hall, Stuart said she can put up her notice outside the shop instead.
She said: “Stuart has been great and really supportive.”
The shop is supporting Royston charity the Nicola Emmerson Trust, which raises funds for research into sudden cardiac death, as well as the work of the Hedgehog Hospital at Shepreth Wildlife Park.
Laura would like to say a special thanks to fellow crafter and ‘partner in crime’ Anne Walls, Anne’s husband Ian and son Martin for helping set up the shop, Tracey Stressing of Make and Create fame and Georgina Keating behind Gifts By Georgie.
She’d also like to thank Lisa Stanway who made a special creative clock using cuttings of the Royston Crow.
No.3 has a very local emphasis, with the walls showcasing some fine photography of Royston scenes, as well as Laura’s own unique selection of crocheted yarn-based toys.
She said: “It’s just amazing, so exciting. My feet haven’t touched the floor.
“It feels like I’m going to wake up tomorrow and it will all be a dream. So many people are already looking in the window. ”
To find out more, search for No.3 Royston on Facebook.
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