Since August 2021 Bellwether Yarns has been located in the heart of Leeds, nestled into a cozy corner inside the Corn Exchange on Call Lane.
Our once tiny shop is now expanding into a bigger space and this journey is both exciting and terrifying, not always in equal measures.
We’d like to think that over the last two and a half years we have cultivated a warm and welcoming environment for knitting enthusiasts and crochet aficionados at any level.
At the end of the year, our good friends at Infaant mentioned that they had made the decision to move into a larger unit upstairs in the Corn Exchange. We are very excited for team Ryan and Mags and wish them all the best in their new space.
Before we knew it, we were in discussions with the landlord to take over Infaant’s “old” unit and even quicker did we seem to find ourselves at the lawyer’s office, signing all the paperwork.
Whilst the prospect of a much bigger space means more room for new products, it isn’t just about the physical size of the new store. It’s very much a total leap of faith. Walking into our new space you’ll be greeted with a canvas of possibilities – more vibrant yarns, a knitting corner and a sense of space that we haven’t had before! Workshops, events and gatherings will finally have room to flourish.
However, woven into our excitement (see what I did there?!) is of course an undercurrent of trepidation. Our tiny cozy corner (also often dubbed the Narnia of Wool, the Wool Exchange or just The Cupboard Under the Stairs!) does hold a very big sentimental value, a place where our journey began. But also, will our loyal customers follow? (You won’t have far to go! Depending on how long your legs are it will take you an extra 25 – 30 steps. Just look for our familiar blue doors!) Can we preserve the close-knit atmosphere in a bigger space? With needles in hand and determination in our hearts, we hope we can find the balance between our current intimate charm and embracing the opportunities of expansion.
We are looking at a big new (currently) empty space, with challenges of increased responsibilities, a larger inventory to curate and all the natural risks associated with expansion.
All of this against a backdrop of having started the business during a global pandemic, followed by a cost of living crisis, wars and unrest and the world literally feeling like it’s on fire at the moment! And still we feel we found our feet, our tribe and are ready for bigger and better things.
We hope you’ll join us as we embrace the unknown, nurture connection and build a future that is as vibrant and, quite possibly, unpredictable – just like the colours on our new shelves.
See you inside unit C6 (next to the café!) soon.