Which independent shops do you recommend?

Perhaps there’s a shop you return to regularly because of the service. Maybe it’s somewhere you recommend to friends and family, or a local business whose owners consistently go that little bit further for their customers.

We want to hear about the independent shops in Eastbourne that you think more local people should know about.

What matters most is that it is a genuinely local business you are happy to recommend.

We’re looking beyond traditional high street shops

Our Buy Local Eastbourne initiative supports independent businesses across Eastbourne and the surrounding area, and we are particularly keen to strengthen three areas:

• Independent Retailers – established local shops and specialist retailers offering something people have a reason to visit locally for.
• Local Produce – businesses selling food, drink and other products produced locally or with a strong local connection.
• Handmade Gifts – local makers, artists, craftspeople and independent businesses selling distinctive handmade products and gifts.

That means the businesses we are looking for will not necessarily all sit on the main shopping streets.

They could be tucked away in another part of Eastbourne, based in one of the surrounding towns or villages, selling from a workshop or studio, or running a specialist shop that people travel specifically to visit.

What makes a shop worth recommending?

It does not have to be the biggest business or have the widest range.

Sometimes the businesses people value most are those that offer knowledgeable advice, remember their customers, stock products that are difficult to find elsewhere or simply provide consistently good service.

That could be a jeweller, clothing retailer, gift shop, homeware store, specialist food business, bookshop, hobby retailer, local producer or something completely different.

Those are exactly the local businesses we want to hear about.

Helping more people shop local

Our aim is to make it easier for local people to find and support good independent businesses.

By building a stronger Business Guide and Buy Local network, we can make it easier for people who actively want to shop locally to find more of the businesses worth knowing about.

And recommendations from local people give us a much better starting point than simply deciding for ourselves which businesses should be represented.

Recommend an independent business

If there is an independent shop, local producer or handmade-gift business you genuinely recommend, tell us about them through thebestof Eastbourne.

Let us know who they are and why you think other local people should know about them.

If they go on to become a featured business with thebestof Eastbourne, your recommendation can become a live review on their feature, helping other people decide where to shop locally.

Know a great independent business? Leave a recommendation today.