Shop Small Saturday: Sunshine and Snow

Welcome to Shop Small Saturdays, a weekly feature where we celebrate our community of independent boutiques, from Bath to Berlin.

Setting up shop in the pretty port town of Bideford, India Snow opened lifestyle boutique Sunshine and Snow in 2018 to “bring a new shopping experience to the local people of North Devon.”

Before the boutique, India was no stranger to the world of interiors. “I had been in the industry pretty much since I was born, helping out at international trade fairs and on buying trips to Asia for my parent’s business,” the Fair Trade interiors brand, Ian Snow. “It felt natural to open a shop and bring a taste of all the inspiring crafts and culture I had witnessed on my travels to the local community.”

Drawing inspiration from her travels to Ibiza, Cape Town and beyond, India brings together an eclectic mix of brands; think Danish fashion favourites like Gestuz and Becksondergaard sitting alongside artisan-made crafts from Afro Art Studio.

Beyond the brilliant brand curation, Sunshine and Snow is a multifunctional space housing a coffee shop and life drawing classes, making it a rainbow-hued community hub and a high street gem.

What does a typical Saturday look like on the shop floor? India invites us to the store to chat mood-boosting playlists, local lunch spots and her new favourite brands.

“Our shop stands out on the street as a rainbow of colour, and walking in you are instantly hit with the delicious smell of fresh artisan coffee from Origin Coffee Roasters. Our Saturday mornings always begin by turning on the coffee machine ready for opening at 9:30am. We have two members of staff on a Saturday: one will start by packing up all the Trouva and online orders out the back, while the other gears up for the morning coffee rush.

“I really like the idea of the shop being a cultural hub for the town where people don’t just come in to buy things, but to visit a class, hang out in the coffee bar, and then maybe buy something along the way if they fall in love with a particular piece”

We’re at our busiest around midday. We have three floors to explore, with beautifully merchandised curations - a mix of colourful, contemporary products and some vintage pieces sourced from around the world. Our shop playlist is always a crowd pleaser too - with songs from artists such as Maribou State, Caribou, The XX and Jamie XX, you can be transported to all sorts of places while you’re browsing.

I have an amazing visual merchandiser, Faith, who also works as our coffee bar manager. She keeps the shop looking beautiful as I am often away, and we’re always reshuffling things to keep the floor fresh. Our favourite brands right now are the Dutch homeware brand HK Living and the bohemian Madam Stoltz. We champion small local brands such as Clovelly Soap which produces beautiful natural soaps and skincare, and St Eval, a Cornish candle company making beautifully fragranced soy wax candles.

I am loving our striped cushions from Afroart and our homeware collections from Anna & Nina at the moment. For womenswear,  I’m excited for our autumn/winter collection from a new Spanish brand for us called Thinking Mu. I always love our sustainable collections from Ecoalf and Thought, too.

Alongside shopping, we also host life drawing classes held by Faith’s mother Fiona, who is a local artist - It’s a wonderful class which brings a mix of interesting people into the store from the local area. I really like the idea of the shop being a cultural hub for the town where people don’t just come in to buy things, but to visit a class, hang out in the coffee bar, and then maybe buy something along the way if they fall in love with a particular piece

“Our shop stands out on the street as a rainbow of colour”

Being situated at the end of a pedestrianised shopping street that runs through the centre of town, there are so many independent shops of varying styles near us. Our favourites nearby are Imogen Rose which makes beautiful handmade silver jewellery, local florist Church Park flowers, health food shop Natures Nutrition, artisan butcher Hiron & Sons and the nearby Burton Art Gallery which has amazing exhibitions and an incredible French café overlooking the park.

Saturday evenings for me are usually a home cooked dinner with my mum who is an absolutely amazing cook, and grows all her own ingredients on the farm where we live. We do have a few great restaurants worth visiting, though. For an evening meal we love the incredible fine dining restaurant Number Eight, or French restaurant Le Petit Monde. I also recently went to the wonderful Glebe House, which is a food and interior lover's dream.”