Shops / Shop of the Week
Shop of the Week: Sky, Clifton Village
The light-blue exterior and yellow awning of card and poster shop, Sky, is an inviting site for passers by on Waterloo Street.
Taking up a chunk of space outside the shop, is a large multi-coloured bench where co-owner Colette Foster, fondly called Coke, sits down for a chat.
Foster runs the shop alongside her husband, Martin Davis, who originally opened the shop in 1976 with university pals after “a conversation in the pub”.
is needed now More than ever
At that time they sold mostly posters and pin badges. “It was a real 70s vibe”, she adds.
Mixed media art used by Colette Foster to create ‘cut-out style’ magazine covers, that are neatly arranged inside the shop in Clifton Village
Cards, posters and pin badges are just the starting point of what one can discover inside Sky
Foster uses mixed media art to handcraft “bold and witty cut-out” style magazine covers that pay homage to the likes of Audrey Hepburn and Rhianna.
The shop’s foundations have been nurtured over the years, with Foster meeting her now-husband and subsequently joining the shop 35 years ago.
Colette added: “We’re really lucky, we’ve been here so long.”
It’s a phrase repeated a few times by the owner; it seems almost as if she can’t believe how they’ve done it.
But really, there should be no surprise; the couple are exceptionally personable and the friendly-faced shop has evidently become somewhat of a pillar in the community.
There are all kinds of cards to choose from at Sky in Clifton – photo: Rafe Llewellyn
Reminiscing interactions with customers – old and new – Foster emphasises the importance of physical cards, something she says they’re “most known for”.
Foster feels selling cards and framing work helps bring the shop close to the community, as customers often share their personal stories behind the purchases they make with staff. It’s a relationship where Foster says customers sometimes just “just pop in for a chat”.
Having remained in the same circle of family and close friends for nearly five decades, at the same site, shops such as Sky are underrated figure points within the community. They offer an amiable face to the historic identities of our towns and villages.
Their unmistakable bench offers just a fraction of the overwhelming evidence for this. The bench, painted colourfully and kindly installed by the team working at Sky, so people queuing outside could rest their legs – something that proved especially helpful during the pandemic.
A particularly unique idea, the bench now serves as an exceptional honour to those who are waiting for their friends, family or partners to shop while they wait.
Sky has been a part of the neighbourhood since 1976
Sky, 27 Waterloo Street, Bristol, BS8 4BT
All Photos: Rafe Llewellyn
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