If you’ve ever taken a trip down to Leicester Market, you will more than likely have seen Moorgate Silks in the outdoor market.
Having been a constant figure for 26 years, the experts in fabric and dried flowers have seen the evolution of the market for nearly three decades.
Providing flowers for all sorts of occasions such as weddings and birthdays, they have become a well-known stall around the city centre if not for their longevity but their bright and beautiful plants and displays.
It just goes to show then the huge influence and importance of local markets that a chance trip to Donnington Market convinced Amanda Collings, who owns the store, to go it alone and open her own shop.
She said: “I’ve been here for 26 years – a lifetime, I know!
“I went to Donnington Market and it was really, really busy there and I thought ‘I can do that’. I wasn’t that happy in my job that I was doing and took the plunge and 26 years later, here I am.”
Having set up in Leicester Market and made it her home, Amanda and Moorgate Silks have developed a loyal basis of customers, an aspect that means the world to her.
“I enjoy the atmosphere and the traders are nice. Some of the customers are really nice,” Amanda continued. “People really love it. Because I’ve been here for so long, I get a lot of regulars that come back and say to me ‘thank goodness, you’ve not gone and you’re still here’. I’m lucky that I’ve got those followers that still come. That is really nice.”
Whilst the purchasing of flowers has changed over recent years with the development of online stores, Amanda is of the opinion that nothing can be better than seeing her beautiful products with your own eyes.
She said: “Online, you can’t touch the products. You can’t feel it. You can’t see the size of it. Whereas here, what you see is what you get. You also get a lot of choice.”
To drop in and see Amanda her wonderful shop, make sure you go down and visit Leicester Market which is open between 7am-6pm Monday through to Saturday.
Alternatively, if you would like to find out more about Moorgate Silks, please visit their website by clicking here.