ABOUT US

Established in 2007, we are a quaint little gift shop full of beautifully hand crafted gifts and artwork made from eco-friendly, sustainable and recycled materials.

We stock a wide range of Fair Trade and Ethical products as well as the fabulous work of over 80 local crafters and artists.  We also have our own natural, ethical and sustainable "own brand" products.

We work very closely with the local Schools, helping them with their Fair Trade projects.  We also supply their school tuck shop with Fair Trade sweets and treats.

We work very hard to ensure that as many of our products as possible are hand made from eco-friendly, sustainable and recycled materials, sourcing our Fair Trade items through reputable and well-established UK importers who are registered with the World Fair Trade Association (WFTO) or the British Association for Fair Trade Shops and Suppliers (BAFTS).
Our packaging is recycled too.  We re-use as much as we can, so don't be surprised if your purchase arrives with you wrapped in pre-used packaging.

ABOUT OUR LOGO

We wanted our logo to say something about us and we believe it does exactly that!  We wanted it to be bright, bold and visually striking so we asked long-term friend and local professional artist, Rachel Ashton, to design it for us.  The design is based around the Fair Trade logo and features a mythical multi-coloured bird carrying a lovingly wrapped present.  This represents the multi-coloured personalities, faiths, cultures and diversity of the crafters and artists who work together to produce our wonderful items.

A BIT ABOUT US

We are a husband and wife team with joint responsibility of everything to do with our little shop.
Ellie looks after it's day-to-day running, arranging events, updating social media and the website.  She has a background in secretarial, office management and event organisation from a varied and interesting 19 year career in the Civil Service.  Ellie is the current Chair of the Huntly Ethical Trading Initiative (HETI) and is responsible for pulling together ethical community projects and maintaining Huntly's Fairtrade Town status.  She is also Secretary of the Huntly Business Association and a member of Huntly's Rotary Club.
Martyn runs his own garden design and maintenance business but does his fair share of the daily tasks in the shop.  He does most of the stock ordering and keeps a keen eye on the accounts!  He spent 22 years in the RAF and has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Statistical Economics and a HND in Finance and Accountancy.
Martyn is Treasurer of HETI and is also a member of Huntly's Rotary Club.

A short history of Huntly, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

This is our town. Nestled in a circle of 4 hills, Huntly is a small town in Aberdeenshire with a population of around 5000 and is a thriving and lively community. There is always something going on!

We have our own football and rugby grounds, golf course, cricket pitches, bowling greens, swimming pool, ski centre, campsite, river beach, historic walks and trails, a town art collection, pipe band, ice cream maker, shortbread factory, library (yes, we still have one!). Our museum is currently closed, but there are plans afoot to reopen it.

We have a lovely historic castle (ruin) which was originally built by the first Lord of Strathbogie in the 1300’s.

The village of Strathbogie was built where the river Bogie and the river Deveron meet. It's main industries were milling and weaving cloth and it was declared a town in 1488 by the 2nd Earl of Huntly. It’s linen industry prospered and, in the 18th century, accounted for a third of all the linen produced in Scotland.

Huntly is the ancestral home of The Gordon Highlanders. Raised in 1793 it was amalgamated with The Queen's Own Highlanders in 1995 and is now part of The Royal Regiment of Scotland.

Huntly prospered further when the railway came to town in 1854. There was a brewery, a distillery, agricultural machinery manufacturers, several cloth mills, a boot and shoe factory, a tinplate works, a millwright and a cigarette factory to name but a few. Sadly these are all gone now. However, Huntly does still have a variety of successful businesses although many shops have closed in recent years.

Huntly became a Fairtrade Town in 2010 and Huntly's “The Gordon Schools” also have Fairtrade School status.

Lying within a conservation area, 80 of Huntly’s beautiful, historic buildings are listed. Our shop is a category C listed building.

Huntly has a role of famous people and we've even had competitors in the Olympic Games!

If you're in the area pop in past and visit! There's always something to do!

“The Ba Hill, The Battle Hill, The Clashmach and The Bin
All form a circle, and Huntly lies within.”

picture is not ours but is available to purchase from the Huntly Express offices