The 14 best independent shops in Manchester

If you’re the kind of shopper that likes variety under one roof, but the Trafford Centre’s not your idea of a relaxed consumer experience, a visit to the Manchester Craft and Design Centre might be just the thing for you. It’s an old fish market from 1873, long since converted into this emporium of hand-crafted furniture, art, jewels, ceramics, lighting and more. And if the shopping gets too much you can relax in the Oak Street Café over a tasty cake.

Bopcap Books in Levenshulme sits inside the famous Levenshulme Antiques Village and sells a carefully curated collection of books and ephemera (posters, magazines etc) across art, photography, design, pop culture, children’s books and illustration, cinema, fashion, the occult and cult fiction, beat lit, crime noir, graphic novels and pulp fiction. Find books by local authors or order online.

Trading for well over a century – nearer 150 years, actually – this iconic, family-run arts and craft store in the Northern Quarter is one of Manchester”s real success stories. If you want to make something, this is where to head – they’ve got everything. 

As the name suggests, this isn’t just a place where you can buy old vinyl, films in all sorts of formats, CDs and memorabilia. It’s a place where can sell it or exchange it, too. And that what sets Vinyl Exchange apart from other indie record shops in the city and what makes it almost impossible to leave without having found something that makes you go ‘YES!’ inside your head. Bargains, rarities and a chance to have a good clearout. 

Established in 1982, Afflecks is a bit of a Manchester institution. And it’s easy to see why, with an admirable indie spirit courtesy of some very cool shops, bars, tattoo parlours, skate shops, events and pleasant people. Definitely somewhere to seek out.  

This community-run cooperative in the heart of Prestwich is an organic supermarket selling fresh fruit, veg, bread, drinks, vegan and vegetarian ingredients, as well as ethically sourced products for your body and home. They also sell the life-changing beverage that is Salford Rum, reason enough to stop by all of its own. 

One of Manchester’s many vintage stores, Retro Rehab is also one of its best. Items are fixed up to look as good as new, so no mothballed, musty cast-offs here. There’s now a location in Preston, too. 

This family-run business, established in 1965, has seen its Shudehill location change beyond belief over the decades but Paramount Books has resisted and stayed just as it always was; a crowded, stacked, musty, magical space rammed from floor to ceiling with pre-owned and vintage books, comics and more. But you’ll probably hear it before you see it – they pump classical music out into the street on the days that it’s open. The place is legendary. Rightly so.

A shopfront representing all things modern and run by The Modernist Society, this tasteful, elegant store has books, magazines, prints, homeware, stationery and more focusing on twentieth-century architecture and design. 

This is no ordinary florist. Based in the Northern Quarter, this floral artistry studio creates innovative and contemporary flower designs for weddings, events, special occasions, shops, hotels, restaurants, you name it.

Taking inspiration from the calmness of Scandinavian living – remember the hygge fad from a few years ago? – here’s a store brimming with simple yet stylish items for the home. It’s a perfect place for gift buying – the stock covers jewellery, body care products, stationery, home living and even sweets. The very fragrance of the place is enough to get you dreaming of the fjords.

Over in Chorlton, this award-winning supermarket sells around 70 varieties of organic fruit and veg, as well as cooking staples, beer, wine and fresh breads. Unicorn owns 21 acres of land from where much of its fresh produce comes, so the quality is high and the prices, thankfully, not hugely so. They’ve expanded to offer environmentally-friendly household goods, cosmetics and baby products, too.

The original Pop, this impressive boutique boasts two floors of vintage items – from clothing and accessories to furniture, vinyl and other kitschy bits. As much as a meeting place as a shop, it holds a café, too.   

A Northern Quarter staple since 1997, this longstanding (it originally opened in ’78), award-winning record shop sells a superb selection of vinyl. A visit here is a rite of passage for any Manchester muso.