Our Top 10 Brighton Independents

Independent business is something incredibly dear to our hearts here at Posh Totty Designs. As an indie ourselves, we know only too well how important it is to really value our customers, and nurture the personal experience only an independent business can. 

Brighton is extremely supportive of indies like us, championing them as a visitor attraction and taking an active role in helping them thrive. The city's infamous North Laine area, and its sister southernly Lanes quarter are the go-to areas for those in search of independent shops, restaurants, bars and other businesses. So it's no surprise that's where you'll find two of Posh Totty Designs' shops, and its pop up beach store just over the lip of the south Lanes underneath the arches of the seafront promenade. But where else is good to go? We put the question out for tender among the team, and here's what and who the PTD recommend for anyone visiting this vibrant city...

1. Gelato Gusto

It wouldn't be a proper visit to the seaside if ice cream wasn't involved. Take it from us, you won't experience anything as exceptional as these iced goods. Gelato Gusto is located on the cornder of Gardner Street and Church Street in the North Laine area and serves gelato so good, there's usually a queue out the door that runs a good quarter down the street. Enjoy myriad flavours, including more unusual ones such as Toblerone, Bubble Gum, Blood Orange and even Red Bull!

2. Cable & Cotton

We love these guys and have ourselves collaborated with them, so there's no way we could miss out on a mention! Cable & Cotton make and sell the loveliest lights you'll ever know, and customers are invited to choose their own light string colourway from an array of incredibly pleasing little cotton balls. We love how they're ideal for a quick seasonal interior freshen up or change around. You'll find them in the heart of the south Lanes.

3. Magazine (Sadly Now Closed)

Who said print press has seen its day? Not any time soon with Magazine in town, a gorgeous shop which does exactly what it says on the tin: sells independent and small run magazines among more popular titles. It's always fascinating browsing the ecelectic range of titles in this shop, which sells small gifts and cards also. They're at the beginning of the North Laine on Traflagar Street.

4. Gunns Florist

These guys are a bit of a Brighton institution and have two shops in the centre of town: one on Sydney Street in the North Laine (opposite Posh Totty Designs, as it happens!) and another on the way to the seafront, at the bottom of North Street. Not only will you find a blooming marvellous array of gorgeous, seasonal flora, but they also do a very cool line in little cacti and succulents too. 

5. Choccywoccydoodah (Now closed)

Chocolate lovers, brace yourself for heaven on Earth. Choccywoccydoodah isn't just any old chocolate shop: it's a chocolate emporium, and skilled crafters and makers sculpt, carve and create the most incredible displays - all made from chocolate. There's unrivalled cake too, a cafe upstairs, and a private room for chocolate-themed parties and events. Wind your way through the Lanes to Meeting House Lane for possibly one of Brighton's most spectacular shops.

6.Pen to Paper

We're HUGE stationery fans at PTD, and we absolutely love our Sydney Street neighbour, Pen to Paper, for its glorious range of cute notebooks, fancy pens, awesome wrapping paper and giftboxes, cards and postcards. So gorgeous are their stock of wonderful stationery that we would be quite happy to see the back of email altogether and revert back to the days of brightly coloured envelopes containing letters written in swish ink pen.

7. Real Patisserie

OMG, we love sweet treats and if there's one business we'll always recommend for the perfect tart or flan, slice of cake or even a macaroon, it's Real Patisserie all the way. These guys has two shops in Brighton (Kemp Town and Trafalgar Street), one in Hove (on the Western Road), and one all the way out in Shoreham too. Make sure you take time to drop by for some serious sweet treats during your Brighton visit.

8. Bert's Homestore

We are SO in love with this shop, it hurts. While it stocks highly practical homewares and kitchen equipment, it's USP is that all of it - ALL OF IT, we tell you! - looks so ridiculously pretty too. Novel, unusual homewares make this store a god send when it comes to picking a gift for someone. Don't expect to be able to move for love nor money in here at Christmastime: it gets packed! Find them either in the North Laine's Kensington Gardens, along the Western Road, or over on George Street in Hove.

9. Resident Records

Record shops are few and far between these days, especially excellent ones like Resident on Kensington Gardens in the North Laine. We could spend hours browsing decades worth of vinyl in this place, which occasionally boasts in-store gigs worth getting involved in. A total mecca for music lovers, you'll easily lose most of the afternoon in here if you're not careful...

10. 64 Degrees

If you're thinking that we like our food here at PTD, then you'd be right. We LOVE all the restaurants and eateries in town, so it's not easy to choose which one comes out on top. However, 64 Degrees, on the south Lanes Meeting House Lane, is a sharp contender and while it's not cheap, it's worth every mouthwatering penny. Small, intimate and cosy, 64 Degrees offer a delicious menu of taster dishes for you to really experience a cacophony of flavours in one sitting.

Where's the first place you head to in Brighton, and what are your favourite independents across the city? Have you visited any of our fave haunts, and if so, what did you think?