The best places to get your retail kicks in the city – our guide to shopping in Liverpool includes retail behemoths like Liverpool ONE, but has a penchant for the smaller, more unusual outlets the city has to offer.
This place is many things to many people: a Catalan restaurant, tapas bar and deli to some, the lone voice of independent retail in Liverpool’s central shopping district to others. But to us, Lunya is a fine place to stock up on chocolates, cheese, cold and cured meats, wine and the sorts of curious tinned foodstuffs that make for great gifts.
Utility, a homewares, gifts and furniture brand, has three shops in Liverpool’s city centre. One of the two branches on Bold Street takes furniture as it’s focus, with beautiful and unusual designs throughtout the store. The other outlet sells lighting, homewares and a selection of quirky smaller items. The third branch is in the city’s major shopping centre, Liverpool ONE. All three are innovative, with interesting choices either for gifts, or bigger pieces for home.
R&H Fine Wines is the only wine store in Liverpool where the stock is majority biodynamic or organic. Tucked away on Queen’s Avenue, this shop might not be the easiest to find – but it is worth searching out. The extensive stock doesn’t translate to patchy advice from the shop’s staff and the owner, Devin Stewart, is an especially deep font of knowledge. It’s the ideal place to be guided through the kind of buying that often feels fraught with posturing and pitfalls.
This little shop, tucked safely within the walls of the city centre’s oldest building, has been doing its contemporary craft thing since 1959. It’s the place to head for one-off and handmade glassware, jewellery, sculpture or prints by both emerging and established artists at prices that, while not cheap, are sensible enough to make their ownership a distinct possibility.
Dead Ink Books is an independent bookshop on Smithdown Road in Liverpool, exclusively stocking books from independent publishers.
Liverpool’s unique Graffiti encompasses a shop, studio, gallery and spaces for artists, and hosts workshops, murals, kids parties and classes.
In the MerseyMade shop you’ll find bottled gin from the likes of Turncoat Gin, Anfield Gin, Albert Dock Gin and Three Graces Gin. Yep, Liverpool REALLY likes its gin.
Red Brick Vintage is a cavernous warehouse of vintage, antiques, retro, salvage, hand-crafted, brocante, collectables, vinyl and more.
A ‘bicycle café’ set in Northern Lights within the Baltic Triangle, serving up great food and coffee to leave you… spinning.
Liverpool’s biggest bookshop.
Men’s clothing store stocking brands such as Norse Projects, Folk, and Our Legacy.
For more than 40 years, Probe Records has stocked an immense selection of music and provided a hangout for vinyl addicts and musicians alike.
The Bluecoat Display Centre in Liverpool is a contemporary craft shop – and it’s been doing its thing for over 50 years – despite funding cuts and recessions.
Junk emporium 69A in Liverpool is the shop that time forgot. It has been peddling vintage wares since 1976.
Utility, a homewares, gifts and furniture brand, has three shops in Liverpool’s city centre.
Ditch the supermarket stuff – Liverpool Cheese Company is a one stop shop for the best that dairy has to offer.
Bradford has given us giants of the visual art world such as David Hockney and Ian Beesley, check out our guide of art galleries to find the best places to experience art in the city.
As a northern city with a culturally rich past, Take some time to explore the weird, wonderful and wacky variety of museums in Bradford.
As the birthplace of J.B. Priestly and the home of the Alhambra, the city's longstanding thespian tradition ensures there are no lack of theatres in Bradford.
Bradford has a reputation for intimate gigs and rowdy rock nights, we've rounded up the best places to see both in our guide of music venues in Bradford.
There are more green spaces in Manchester than you might think. We've picked out some of the best parks and gardens in and around the city.
Explore the zero waste shops in Greater Manchester and make small, personal steps towards tackling environmental issues like plastic pollution.
From water parks to national trust properties, here are our top places to go rural without leaving Manchester too far behind.
Looking for somewhere to eat outside in Manchester in these hot summer months? Here's our guide to the restaurants in Manchester with the best areas for al fresco dining.
Whether you’re looking for vinyl records or top class chocolate, Sheffield’s independent shops are here to serve – here’s our selection, from the legendary to the eclectic.
A round-up of the best walks in Sheffield, including the town centre, official tours and the surrounding area by Creative Tourist.
Our guide to the thriving city of Liverpool, where new creative futures are written against the backdrop of a unique history.
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All signs point toward June being a scorcher of a month, so let’s take a look at all things summery food and drink.
From literary activities to brilliant independent shops, keep your minds and homes filled with the good stuff this month.
Check out our updated guide for lively theatre festivals, rip-roaring rooftop circus and dreamy outdoor shows.
