About Off The High Road
Halt, traveller!
Halt, traveller! You have wandered Off The High Road and, I must say, shown remarkably good judgement in doing so. I am Margot Wayward, highwaywoman by reputation and hunter of independent traders by choice. Keep thy gold safely in thy pocket; I have little interest in it. I travel these roads in search of curious shops, magnificent market stalls, talented makers and traders with a tale worth telling. Kings may summon me, tea may grow cold and horses may become impatient — but when word reaches me of an independent worth discovering, everything else must wait. Come along, then. There are treasures to be found, and I haven’t a moment to lose.
We seek something altogether more valuable: a good independent trader.
Welcome to Off The High Road, where we leave the well-trodden path behind in search of independent shops, market stalls, makers and merchants worthy of discovery.
Our highway folk roam not for fortune, but for curiosity. We seek the little shop hidden down a side street, the market trader with a tale worth telling, the maker whose hands create something remarkable, and the independent business quietly doing things rather differently.
For whilst the great highways may lead thee towards familiar names, we prefer the crooked lane, the bustling market and the curious doorway.
Our Quest
Our mission is a simple one: to discover and celebrate independent traders.
Some may have traded for generations. Others may have unpacked their very first market stall but yesterday. Some shall have grand shopfronts; others little more than a table, a canopy and a very good idea.
We care not.
If there is passion behind the counter, something interesting upon it and a story worth hearing, our highway travellers may well come calling.
No Gold. No Fortune. Just Good Traders.
Off The High Road isn’t about finding the biggest businesses in town.
Quite the opposite.
We want the independents one might walk straight past. The peculiar. The wonderful. The ambitious. The family-run. The handmade. The traders known by everybody in their neighbourhood but scarcely anybody beyond it.
We wish to know what they make, what they sell, why they began and what keeps them opening the doors each morning.
And then we tell travellers where to find them.
Hast Thou Seen a Trader?
Perhaps thou knowest a magnificent little shop.
Perhaps a market trader has relieved thee of twenty pounds in exchange for something thou absolutely didst not need — yet now cannot imagine living without.
Or perhaps thou art the trader.
Then speak!
Send word to Off The High Road and tell us thy tale. Our highway folk are forever seeking their next discovery.
But be warned…
Should we find thee interesting, there may come a knock upon thy door.
Stand and deliver… thy story.