When you walk down a high street in Wales you’re spoilt for choice. With dozens of shops and brands to choose from there are, despite the obvious challenges facing retailers, plenty of options for shoppers.
However what can feel an increasingly rare sight is independently owned or family-run businesses. But even in an increasingly globalised Wales some of these businesses survive and thrive.
While some do continue to call the city’s busiest cities their home others prosper as hidden treasures that have continued to serve their communities for decades. We spoke to three such businesses about what it’s like to operate as an independent on the high street at the moment.
Bakers Basket
Lynette James, owner of Bakers Basket
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Lynette James has been operating this quaint little bakery for more than 35 years in Swansea’s Brynmill. Reflecting on her decades in business Lynette admitted she did not believe her bakery would stay open for this long when she first established it. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter.
The 63-year-old said: “I wanted to be self-employed, like an asset, I wanted to work for myself… I didn’t think I was going to be here over three decades. When I opened the door I didn’t think I was going to be here 35 years later. I’ve enjoyed it I’d say. I have made a lot of friends. I had customers, I got good customers, they’re lovely. I’m very, very lucky. “
Bakers Basket sells breads, cakes, pasties, rolls, baguettes, breakfast, eggs, and more. All of it is made fresh out of the oven.
Freshly-baked pasties
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Christmas mince pies and cakes
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
A lot has changed over the years though. Lynette said: “We’ve made the shop bigger – it used to be much smaller. We used to sell groceries – we don’t do that now. It’s just changed a lot. I think that fast food like pasties sell more now than we used to. We used to sell more groceries – bread, ham, and cheese. Now we don’t sell that so much but we sell the other stuff – the fast food I would say.”
Lynette arranging cakes
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Freshly-prepared bread
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
When you own an independent business hard work cannot be substituted, according to Lynette. She said: “We come in – we begin on the premises. So we get to cut out our salads fresh, cook our food that’s needed for the rest of the day. The longest I would say is for the pasties and the preparation. We do it all in the morning so it’s fresh.”
The process is continuous. “I work six days a week,” said Lynette. “When I’m not at work there’s other work to do like shopping for the shop, bookwork for the shop. So there’s still things to do for the shop. It’s just a lot of commitment. If you want to go on holidays it’s not as easy as everybody else where they can just pick a holiday and go and they know when they got their holidays. I’ve got to make sure that I can get cover and that the girls can be available to do it and luckily I’ve got good staff. So I guess I’m lucky.”
The donation box set up by staff to donate all their Christmas tips to a local foodbank
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Lynette talking to a customer
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
But the most important aspect of Bakers Basket for Lynette is the community it serves. She said: “We are a community shop. We do a lot for the community. We collect for the foodbank and, you know, we’re here to serve aren’t we? Also with the elderly if they’re stuck in we deliver. So we go the extra mile – that’s what we do.” She added: “People come here because it’s personal service – you don’t get that at a supermarket.”
Rose and Thorn’s Loot
Rias Nash, owner of Rose and Thorn’s Loot
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
A relatively new business, Rose and Thorn’s Loot started off in Swansea’s High Street Arcade in April 2023 before its owner, Rias Nash, moved to the city’s Castle Street in January. Filled to the brim with anime collectibles, plushies, and other goods, Rias’ shop acts as a haven for anyone who loves games, comics, and everything in between.
For Rias a shop like Rose and Thorn’s Loot was a dream come true. The 30-year-old said: “I’ve always dreamt of having my own business since I was a little girl. When I grew up I wanted to get into crafts. So I started making things out of resin and a lot of my products were all handmade. I used to attend craft fairs and then I started making geeky kinds of things like a lot of games-based products. When I started selling some of my collectibles I realised that people wanted to buy that kind of thing.
“So that’s when I started sourcing geeky gothic things and put in a bit of my personality into the business and it grew and grew from there to what it is today. I never dreamt in a million years that I would have my own shop on Castle Street. It started from something small and it’s just grown and grown.”
As of now the shop’s best-selling products are its plushies. However Rias admitted she needs to do a little extra to compete with big brand names as an independent business. She said: “I would say competing against the bigger company names, especially when you’ve got the likes of HMV and Smiths, is being able to have different products in, and to try and convince people to shop at small businesses rather than sort of the big franchises that we’re all familiar with.”
The shop is filled to the brim
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Different collectibles on sale
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
How people are serviced also makes a difference. “It’s just trying to be unique, trying to stand out, and making sure that customers, as soon as they enter through the door, that they feel like they’re appreciated and make sure they have great customer service from beginning to end.”
From the time the shop opens its community element starts to come into play. Rias said: “It starts with me coming in in the morning and then literally we have loads of geeky, gothic people coming in and also everyday kind of people. They just come in and we have a chat about the best anime that we’re watching etc.”
As the shop often hosts activities it does require some preparation. Rias said: “We open at 10.30am every day except for Sundays, which is 11am, and finish times depends. We do Dungeons & Dragons sessions in the evening and sometimes a cosplay club as well. So some days we shut at 7pm if we’ve got a club running but if we haven’t then it’s usually like 5.30pm to 6pm. We try our best through our sessions to bring the community together.”
Collectibles aren’t all that are on offer
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Other items on display
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Rias said niche independent businesses play a huge role to support their community as they provide safe space. She said: “I think for us we run our sessions which are literally not profitable in the slightest. But I feel like bringing the community together, and especially because we are great supporters of the LGBTQ+ community, so it’s about making sure that people feel safe.
“A lot of people who have anxiety come into our shop and they’ve said it’s like walking into a friend’s house because we’re so relaxed and that’s how we want to be. We don’t want to be formal like other shops, like big names. I think it’s really important to make people feel welcome and feel accepted and that they can be themselves here.”
For any new entrepreneur thinking of starting their own business in Wales Rias said the key was to not give up. “I would say: ‘Don’t give up even at the biggest hurdles’. I think life is full of challenges and especially when you’ve got so many businesses and so much competition out there. There can be days where it can be really quiet and you think: ‘Why am I doing this?’ Or it’s really stressful but you just have to remember the good days and you just hold on to that.”
Vintage Bloom
Aimee James, owner of Vintage Bloom
(Image: Shaurya Shaurya)
Nestled in Neath Road, Swansea, this flower and gift shops can cater to anyone’s flower needs whatever the occasion. Aimee James, 39, started working at Vintage Bloom in 2016 and went on to buy it from its previous owners in 2018.
Speaking of her inspiration Aimee said: “I really wanted one day to have my own shop. My dad had passed away suddenly the December before and I had the opportunity the following November and then I just grabbed it with both hands. I just thought that I needed to do something.”
Running an independent business keeps you busy – even more so when you’re a mother. Aimee said: “A typical day is that I get my flowers from the local wholesaler in Swansea then I come to work, condition all my flowers, start making my bouquets, and then start delivering them, dealing with different types of people all day.”
The window display at Vintage Bloom
Other items at Vintage Bloom
(Image: Aimee James)
Having worked in the business for eight years now Aimee said: “I love my work. I love the surprise on people’s faces when they’ve got a bouquet and they open the door.”
Generally Aimee manages all aspects of the business on her own but does get help delivering during busier parts of the year like Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day. She said managing stock also plays a big role in an independent business like hers. “With stock control what I try and do is I look at the weather for the week and then I might go overstock for that week that the weather’s looking bad. I’m really, really fortunate that I am literally around the corner from the wholesaler so that if the day gets busier I can go and source more flowers from them then.”
The decorations at Vintage Bloom
(Image: Aimee James)
Christmas decorations at the shop
While Aimee admitted supermarkets do pose a challenge she insisted businesses like hers can provide a much more personal touch. She said: “Supermarkets undercut us. So it’s really, really hard because they’re a chain and they can take everything away from us as people are looking for value for money. But we are selling better stock, better products.
“You’re getting a bespoke thing – not just a round of flowers that everybody’s got. With me I can make it what you want. But there is a challenge because people sometimes haven’t got the money and would go to the supermarkets. We can’t compete with that.”