Think up-to-the-minute fashion and niche labels, and a 17th-century cobbled West Country high street might not immediately spring to mind. However, the high street in Frome has become a destination for the fashion-forward who are searching for pieces that are off the beaten track. The one-stop clothing and interiors shop Resident is brimming with such gems and is nestled on Catherine Hill alongside the indie record store Covers Vinyl, the menswear store Assembly and the coffee shop Moo & Two.
It was this dream location that encouraged Resident’s owners, James Borley and Greg Avis, to move to Frome from their home in Brixton in 2016. Their grade II listed store is an Instagram-friendly mix of ragged stone walls, exposed beams and worn floorboards, and is decorated with bare light bulbs, potted ferns and simple plywood shelving. “It’s a real gem,” says Borley.
The couple’s thoughtful edit of brands that they have sniffed out on Instagram and on blogs is what makes the store unique — you’d be hard-pressed to uncover many of the labels elsewhere, even in the capital.
Nothing here is loud and shouty. Instead it shares an understated, unfussy theme with a focus on simple, natural fabrics and a muted colour palette. You’ll find OffOn’s linen dresses, jumpsuits and oversized shirt dresses handmade in Lithuania next to blush-pink bucket bags by the British leather goods maker Rosie Drake-Knight. There’s menswear too — from Form & Thread and Wax London — as well as watches from the Glaswegian label Instrmnt, sweet rompers from the childrenswear brand Sleepy Doe and plant hangers from Ro Co and Ferm Living.
The store celebrated its first birthday a few weeks ago, and keeps up a bustling schedule of events that fit the homespun theme. A candle-making class is in the pipeline, and look out for a spoon-carving workshop in August.
20 Paul Street, Frome, Somerset BA11 1DT; residentstore.co.uk