Sarah Gibbons was met with bemusement by the owner of the next-door unit when she first got the keys to her shop, Modern Love. ‘This street’s dead, by the way,’ warned Gibbons’ neighbour, failing to instil confidence in the first-time shop owner. Thankfully, the pessimistic local businessman couldn’t have been more wrong. Based near Trongate, Modern Love is a vibrant, quirky homeware store that has attracted significantly more business in its first year than Gibbons expected.

‘The aesthetic is nicely designed, colourful pieces,’ she explains. ‘We’ve not got big furniture; we’ve not got lamps or chairs or tables. It’s all accessories, little bits that can add a bit of character to your house.’ From mushroom-shaped salt and pepper shakers to thermo-regulated wool slippers, Gibbons searches high and low to handpick each item. It’s one of many successful brands to emerge from the Barras Market and the homeware expert attributes the success of her colourful business to her native city’s dreary weather. ‘The grey aesthetic was a big trend a few years ago. But I think in a city like Glasgow, a lot of people probably realised that the weather’s grey, so why would you want your house to be fully grey?’

Gibbons and her small team were kept busy in autumn thanks to a line of pop culture-themed Christmas decorations. Among the esoteric collection is a Chappell Roan figurine, a ramen bowl and their bestseller: an injector pen filled with the weight-loss drug Ozempic. ‘We’re getting orders from Germany, America, Holland; it’s actually mental!’ Gibbons laughs, reflecting on the success of the not-particularly festive baubles. While many of Glasgow’s trendiest retailers are based in the West End and Southside, Gibbons says she has no plans to relocate Modern Love from the city centre, where it ‘still feels like Glasgow. There’s always a wee bit of drama; there’s always some stramash going on. It’s a bit crazy, but it’s good.’ 

Modern Love, 8 Parnie Street, Glasgow.