People make Glasgow - the butcher, the baker, even the candlestickmaker - the local characters that run our local shops are well known in the community, especially the business owners that have set up shop in our city for decades, and in some cases, over a century!
This article aims to celebrate the businesses that made Glasgow, most of which every Glaswegian will have visited at some point in their life.
From Tam Shepherd’s to Slaters, here are eight businesses that made Glasgow what it is today.
5. Glasgow Stamp Shop (1908)
Perhaps the best tagline out of any shop in Glasgow: ‘Where no one is second class’ - the stamp shop has been a popular niche shop in the city centre for well over 100 years - nowadays you can find them online and above the post office and Malik’s Barbers on West Nile Street. | Google Maps
6. Dee’s(1951)
Opening in Cambuslang in 1951, Dee’s of Trongate is a Glaswegian institution, and will be well-remembered by any past (or present!) Mods of Glasgow. The flagship Trongate store opened in 1958, and the shop continues to evolve with the style and culture of the mod-scene across Britain, from the original Mods to the Skinheads to Britpop and right through to the present day. (Pic:Dee’s of Trongate) | Dee’s of Trongate
7. Voltaire and Rousseau (1972)
Voltaire and Rousseau is as bohemian as it comes in Glasgow - you can pore through thousands of rare second-hand books manuscripts, maps, records and ‘hundreds of curiosities from Scotland’s past’ on Otago Lane. There’s even a resident cat! | Voltaire and Rousseau
8. The Big Top (Late 80’s/early 90’s)
This Glasgow institution on Charing Cross looks like it could be plucked straight from the Victorian era, but in reality - the shops been run by the same family for the last 30 years! Still a fantastic innings though. Forget Hamley’s and ForbiddenPlanet - The Big Top eschews the more modern toy and gaming shops for a more traditional state of affairs, from teddies to puppets to board games and everything in between! | Contributed