Vintage studio Norfolk Retro reopens in its new Broadland home this weekend. Owner Laura Budds, described as one of the best vintage furniture dealers in the UK, explains all
Can you remind readers who you are and what you do?
I’m Laura and my business is Norfolk Retro. I sell vintage furniture and homeware and have just moved to a new location in the Norfolk Broads.
How has everything been since we featured Norfolk Retro in June 2022?
So much has happened since July 2022! I was just moving in to my second city centre premises on St Augustine’s Street, less than a year after opening my very first shop. I launched a pop up space for small businesses, then vintage clothing shop stocked by local sellers and finally the UK’s first high street vintage Ercol showroom. It’s been a busy few years!
What has led you to moving Norfolk Retro from Norwich to its new Broadland home?
I absolutely loved the NR3 location of my shop and the community of small businesses we had built on St Augustine’s Street, but I started to feel it was time to move on and had a vision for a large, open plan space out of the city centre where things could work a little differently. I’ve learnt lots about my customers and how they like to shop and I’m soon launching a new ‘vintage studio’ space that will be open a couple of times a month for browsing and buying. It’s a lovely large, light space that I’ve been busy filling with all the best furniture I can find, with a focus on midcentury and Ercol.
What do you love about Ercol so much?
I’ve loved Ercol for so long and it’s great to see its popularity soar. Ercol is special as it works so well in a modern home. The sofas and armchairs are so stylish and I update them with modern upholstery. They’re also super easy to move around as although they’re solid and well made, they’re light and easy to manoeuvre around door frames etc (which is handy as I’m very much a one woman band!) Unfortunately Ercol’s popularity is pushing the prices up and coffee tables in particular are hard to find, but I do my best!
How does it feel to be thought of as one of the best vintage furniture dealers in the UK and an expert in the field?
Well any recognition is always amazing and very gratefully received! It’s been almost 5 years since I’ve been doing this as my full time job after leaving teaching and I never thought I’d have had the success I have. I count my lucky stars that I’m able to do this every day and put my heart and soul into it, so hopefully that shows.
When do you open and where will people be able to find you?
The new vintage studio is opening on Sunday 27th 11am – 3pm. I’m at Tradebase, which is a little industrial estate in Catfield, near Potter Heigham and Stalham, not far from the coast. Everyone is welcome to pop by and I will have coffee on the go!
And how can people find out more about what you do?
My new website is currently under construction, so the best place to find out more is my Instagram and Facebook pages, or you can reach me via email at norfolkretro@gmail.com
What are your hopes and dreams for Norfolk Retro?
I hope that people will love my new furniture collections and studio as much as I do! A shoppable website is on the way, so although my Norfolk customers will always be my priority, those further afield will also be able to shop more easily with me. My main aim is always to keep aligning my business with the shifts in retail and vintage so that I can hopefully still be selling beautiful things for many years to come.
Norfolk Retro, Catfield, Norfolk, NR29 5AA. Follow @norfolkretro on Instagram.
Featured images – supplied
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