Stores like Cow Vintage, Blue Rinse, and Pop Boutique, not to mention the numerous charity shops and pop-ups that line Oldham Street, have turned that corner of town into a haven for lovers of the fashions of yesteryear.
But now there’s a new outpost in the heart of Chinatown – and it’s possibly the most stylish, charming vintage store in the city yet.
Stare Society opened last December, and has put some serious effort into both sourcing the items it sells, and decorating the space it sells them from.
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Tucked away up a flight of stairs in a corner unit above Red Chilli, you’ve probably walked straight past it a dozen times already.
Stare Society in Chinatown, Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
But glance up above the long-standing Chinese restaurant and you’ll notice a slowly rotating disco ball in the window, giving just a taste of all the treats in store.
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Venture inside and you’ll feel like you’ve stepped right back in time to the 1970s, greeted by the sound of Fleetwood Mac being piped through the speakers (the legendary group are also the stars of a huge framed photo above the fireplace inside).
Stare Society is decorated to the nines – fringed lampshades, rattan screens, glitter ball plant pots, guitars, and a huge leopard print chaise lounge in the window, draped in retro-printed cushions, vinyl records and vintage hats.
There are 1970s-inspired scented candles named things like Cherry Bomb, Tiny Dancer and Rebel Rebel, and all sorts of knick-knacks (sunglasses, tiny mirrors, antique glassware) hailing back to the glory days of rock n roll.
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Then there’s the clothes – racks full of leather jackets, leopard-print furry coats, and fringed suede waistcoats.
Retro t-shirts with contrasting collars, with ‘Manchester 1970’ and ‘Chinatown 1970’ scrawled across them.
Cowboy boots painted with stars, piles of colourful felt berets, and loudly-patterned blouses.
The space is so beautiful, it’s actually available to hire, for things like photoshoots and private events, with a vision to host intimate gigs inside in the future.
Stare Society joins the booming vintage scene in Manchester, like Bare Necessities, the online giant that recently hosted a pop-up store on High Street that everyone lost their minds over.
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You’ll find Stare Society at 20 Nicholas Street on the edge of Chinatown in Manchester.
Featured image: The Manc Group
Shopping
Top Northern Quarter vintage shop Gone Fishing is closing – with one final, massive sale
Daisy Jackson
Gone Fishing Vintage, one of the Northern Quarter’s top vintage shops, is closing for good after one final weekend in Manchester.
The popular shop will be going out with an almighty sale, offering 50% off everything in store on 10 and 11 January.
Gone Fishing has carved out a niche thanks to its menswear-focused, curated range of second hand fashion, often sourced from Italy.
You’ll always find a quality selection of brands including Stone Island, CP Company, Burberry, and Moschino.
And it’s caught plenty of eyes during its time on Oldham Street – just last year, Drake popped into Gone Fishing to buy himself a vest.
But now owner Seb Dixon has confirmed he’s closing down the shop – and soon.
He said it’s been a ‘f***ing tough decision’ but Gone Fishing has ‘outgrown the space’.
In a video shared to Instagram, he announced an ‘everything-must-go’ sale with half-price clothes this weekend, kicking off from 11am on Saturday 10 January.
Seb said: “Quick announcement – I’m closing down the shop. This might come as a bit of a surprise to you, but unfortunately it’s true.
“After doing this for so many years, it’s been a f***ing tough decision.
“So I started it as a passion project and it’s not the fact that I don’t have passion for it anymore or have fallen out of love with it or you guys. I just want to take it in a slightly different direction.
“I just feel like we’ve outgrown the space a little bit and how creative we can get in there, and creativity was the main reason why I started the business.
“So this weekend is our final weekend in the shop and we need to get rid of everything. So we’re doing 50% off all items.
“I reckon it’s gonna be a little big mad – we’ll open at 11 but I’d say get there a little bit earlier.
“I just want to say thank you to everyone who shopped with us, supported us over the last few years. Especially the customers, we wouldn’t be here without you.
“Stay tuned as we release our new location where you can shop with us. Until then, see you on Saturday.”
Serving as yet another fitting tribute from his beloved football club, who already honoured the late, great, Manc musician at Old Trafford, it’s rumoured to launch later this year.
Snapped alongside United’s current third kit for the 25/26 season, the rumoured ‘lifestyle’ jersey is apparently coming very soon.
This pair of images has seemingly confirmed the claims made by trusted online kit source, Footy Headlines, who specialise in sharing pictures of the football shirts, boots and more, who had already reported on the release in 2025.
As you can see, not only does the design feature a striking blue take on the band’s iconic album art style (expanded from an original painting by guitarist John Squire), but if you look closely, it also features the band’s iconic song and overriding slogan, ‘I Wanna Be Adored’, built into the crest.
You can see the rest of the existing Stone Roses collection in full down below.
We’re sure there are loads of other little details besides the twist on the badge still to be spotted, but for now, all we know is that the world-famous sporting franchise is continuing to capitalise even further on The Stone Roses connection.
Since the last batch of officially licensed adidas x Stone Roses merch quickly became collector’s items, we can only assume that this latest shirt won’t be the only new addition.
For instance, one user already commented, ‘Where’s the bucket hat?’
As for Manchester United, they’re no doubt looking to generate as much revenue as possible after having to pay another sizeable severance package following the sacking of Ruben Amorim – the question is, who is going to be next?
Daisy Jackson -
2nd February 2023 
