Living above our shop.

How did that happen? An introduction to how we came to live above our shop in Kingsbridge, Devon.

Many friends have said there’s a book waiting to be written about what it’s like living above a shop and i’m nurturing that idea, but to begin with I’m just going to tell you how it came about that we ended up living above our own shop in Kingsbridge, Devon.UK

The shop door is the front door! There’s only one way in and out so when the blind’s down, we’re often home.

Four years ago we were living in rented accomodation in Kingsbridge wondering how we would be ever able to find a home of our own in the UK and were pretty downhearted about the likelihood that we’d never again be living in a building where we could choose the paint colours. Mowing someone else’s lawn. ( I did admit there would be too many metaphors!)

We had considered living in France but Brexit happened and then my son became seriously ill. We ruled out moving abroad. We were prepared to explore any idea but we knew we wouldn’t be able to easily move from the area our business is, our friends are and our family live. We looked at residential boat moorings, caravan sites and hidden parcels of land hoping we could find something. Essentially, somewhere we could create a home without worrying about the growing cost of rent.

I walked past 25 Fore Street and saw a commercial agents sign saying it was for sale and went home and said to Tim “How about living above a shop?”

“I dont’ want to live above a bloody shop” was his reply.

Unbeknownst to me, Tim had enquired about the shop only to find it had already been sold. He never told me he’d left our details with the agent. Six months later the agent phoned and asked if we were still interested as the deal had fallen through. Six months had passed and we were beginning to feel impotent to our situation and to be honest, sad that perhaps the opportunity of a home here in UK was impossible without renting.

Of course we said we were still interested. We met the agent at the shop, stood in the vacated cafe that was stuffed full of old pie warmers, crockery, broken chairs, greasy carpet and when the agent told us the price we said we’d buy it there and then. In fact, I remember Tim saying we’d buy it and he didn’t even ask me first! We hadn’t had a tour, we didn’t know what was above the shop or behind the scenes, we just knew it was a building we could afford here, in Devon, near our kids, in a town we love. We’d work the rest out in the conversations to come.

25 Fore Street is a Listed Building, mainly due to the extraordinary large shop window and features that pertain to it being a Merchant’s House and we did have to consult the Heritage Officer when we repaired the rotten windows. It helps to have handy skills and the ability to live flexibly if you’re rennovating an old property and on a budget. It has 3 floors above the shop floor and a large cellar that extends the length of the property. We have a tiny courtyard and a wash house out the back. The front door is the only door. No side access, no parking and no garden. It’s a terraced building and was originally built with the intention that the trader (or Merchant) would live above. We’ve been to our local Cookworthy Museum in Kingsbridge to search for pictures of the shop but have only found recent versions in photographs. We know it was a cafe for many years but it’s also been a pet shop, a greengrocer and we think possibly a small bank. We’re still to find out what the first invention of the shop was. We’ll have to keep researching!

We knew living above a shop would be different and would take alot of adjusting but surprisingly it’s felt really natural, cosy and on the whole, easy. Of course there are practical irritations like storing ladders, unloading the shopping, constantly moving the car and finding the sweet spot between looking open and looking closed. At the end of the working day we lower the blind as our family eating area and kitchen are located behind the curtain that divides shop from home. Sometimes on summer evenings we eat at one of our bistro tables in the shop, just so we can sit in the sun that comes through the front window. I’m sure the passers by think we are in some kind of exclusive dining room. Luckily we sell lovely objects and lots of bistro tables so there’s usually one in the shop we can make into an impromptu dinner table. After work we draw back the curtains and the shop becomes part of our home. I thought that would be the hardest part but strangely, as the shop is always dusted and no one leaves their stuff lying around in it, it always looks like a perfect painting we get to sit in or walk through.

I did say there was a whole book potentially in this subject!

The flat above the shop was in a shocking state and every inch of the building needed ( and alot still does) repair and attention but when one has the chance of having a true home of their own, it’s a willing adventure. We weren’t really thinking about the work ahead or the challenges of blending shop with home. We would work out what the shop would look like once we’d got a sofa in and pulled up that greasy carpet!

The cheesy bit in this whole new adventure was that Tim and I had our first date in the shop in 2008 when it was a cafe. I remember ordering a cheese panini and navigating the stringiness whilst keeping my cool. It didn’t work! We sat by a table in the front of the shop we now own and live above. We feel very lucky but sharing our story is not about sharing the story of our luck. I hope sharing it opens you up to the possibility that if you’re in a similar situation to the one we were in, then know that sometimes (and I stress sometimes) that opportunities are there. I for one believe that reclaiming the spaces above shops for business owners and families to occupy could be an important turning point in the health of our High Streets and communities. I’ll explore these thoughts in another blog in the future.

Scaffolding, chaos, dust and graft but home!