Trendy Southsea sustainability shop celebrates after holding launch party nearly a year and a half after opening

Tweedy Clothing, located in the heart of the bustling Albert Road, threw open its doors after a renovation as it welcomed in the community for the first time since all Covid restrictions were lifted.

The shop has endured a stop-start presence after first opening in the middle of the pandemic in October 2020.

The owners of the funky boutique shop were never able to throw an opening party as the country was plagued by lockdowns.

But now, on a bright sunny Saturday – reflecting the growing optimism – Tweedy was finally able to hold its official launch party.

A variety of delicious nibbles and prosecco were served up as punters flocked through the door.

The shop had been closed for the last three weeks while refurbishment took place but now Cacey Barks, joint owner of the shop with her partner Josh Bland, were happy to open the doors again to the public.

Cacey said: ‘Because of Covid and all the lockdowns we were never actually able to have a proper opening party so it’s nice to be able to welcome people and say we are here and put our stamp down.

‘It’s been really nice with a steady flow of people coming in throughout the day to show their support.

‘It’s been lovely to see people we know and lots of new faces too. It’s been nuts how many times we have been open and closed so it’s good to let people know we are here and not going anywhere.’

The renovation has seen the shop now have its own branding on the front with black and gold colours painted by Cacey and Josh. A new till point has been created to make a more permanent space to replace the previous ‘pop-up’ version.

The shop still has its range of environmentally friendly items with it now also featuring products such as gemstone jewellery, organic cord-flared trousers, denim leggings now in black and unisex hoodies as the firm rolls out more clothing for men.

Plans are also afoot to use the shop as a space for other events such as meditation or ‘breathing’ groups in the evening. ‘We want to bring people into the place for a chat and to find out what is going on in the area,’ Cacey said.

There was a mood of excitement and anticipation for what the future holds after the inevitable uncertainty caused by the pandemic which savaged the retail sector.

‘It’s really good now restrictions have been lifted. People seem more relaxed already,’ Cacey said. ‘Because we are quite a small shop before we could only have a few people inside. Now we don’t have to tell people to wait outside in the rain.

‘We’ve got to live through (Covid) now. We’ve got the summer to look forward to and I think Southsea will be busy. There’s already more people around.

‘We can now look forward and want to grow and grow. If we were busy enough when it was hard then hopefully things can only be better from now on. We are excited about it.’

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Chloe Gunning, who works in the shop, said: ‘It’s nice to work for a sustainable place with transparency of its products.

‘People have been very nice and supportive and appreciate buying things they know where they come from.

‘It’s been a pretty weird time but everyone is now paddling in the same boat.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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