We’ve spent a lot more time at home in 2020. So, it’s perhaps no surprise that national interest in quality property decor has skyrocketed.
Almost everyone has done a little bit of DIY and experimented with new styles this year – keeping themselves busy during lockdown(s) and ensuring their home remains a nice environment in which to work, rest and play.
Interior businesses have been booming as a result – and one particularly exciting success story is happening just down the road.
Despite only being one year old, Cheshire-based Wild One Interiors has quickly established itself as the creme-de-la-creme of homeware brands – recording huge sales month on month.
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Demand for home decor is high right now – but Wild One has flourished because it sells the kind of bright, bold and daring items you simply don’t see anywhere else; from animal furniture to wildlife-themed kitchen utensils.
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The brand started life as an Instagram page, earning so much acclaim that it morphed into one of the busiest homeware businesses in northern England almost overnight.
Founders told us: “Wild One was set up after having lots of traction on our home account on Instagram and we wanted to be able to share our style with people in a tangible way other than through photos.
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“We started off with a small amount of stock working from a garage which has recently seen us take on a warehouse with staff to help us process our orders.
“We LOVE sourcing products and keeping an eye on trends but not following them – making sure we have fresh stock all the time and styling them in our home to give people ideas of how our products will work.”
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They added: “We love inspiring other people to be braver in their interiors and encourage that if you love something – go for it. Don’t hold back or worry about what Auntie Sally will think of your black ceiling when she calls round.
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“Your home is your safe place, even more so this year and it should reflect you and your family.
“We have a two and three-year-old and people often say: ‘we can’t have nice things with kids around’.
“There’s always a way around it – put your breakables higher up, keep that last tin of paint with a dribble left in the bottom to touch up the walls where they wiped jam sandwiches!”
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There are some truly wild and wonderful products on offer from the brand at the moment – and you can take advantage of big discounts on these items by entering the code ‘MANCBLACKFRIDAY’ at the checkout.
Even if you’re not sprucing up your own pad, these items could make for some cracking Christmas gifts…
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Shop the range by visiting the Wild One website now.
Drama Call opening first-ever flagship shop in Manchester
Danny Jones
Streetwear superstars Drama Call are opening their new flagship store and first-ever permanent site in Manchester city centre this weekend.
Expect massive queues and lots turning up wearing the increasingly recognisable starry logo.
Already a much-loved brand not just here in 0161 but across the nation at large, the native independent business turned street-style favourites and UK fashion phenomenon are no strangers to HUGE pop-ups in their hometown.
However, they’ve never had a mainstay location anywhere in the country, let alone Greater Manchester – well, until now, that is…
Credit: Press shots (supplied)
Debuting in the Northern Quarter this Sunday, the venue located on Tib Street will effectively serve as Drama Call‘s new HQ.
The local label has done everything from popping up vans with Manc rapper Aitch to collaborating with Man United for multiple limited edition collections, so it only felt like a matter of time before they’d make a big brick-and-mortar splash in our fair city.
Most notably, they’re also taking over the same unit as the Sheep Shop, a former skate shop and legendary urban clothing tastemaker of the 90s; they were one of the first places in Britain to stock famous names like Stüssy, Supreme, Carhartt, The North Face and many more.
With that in mind, it feels only fitting that they carry on the trendsetting tradition from the same premises, and just spitting distance from the likes of Note, as well.
And that’s not all, either: before the full launch, they’ll also be holding an exclusive cash-only shirt swap event, where a limited number of certain collector’s items will be sold for as little as £10.
Other things to note are the additions of signed vinyls by homegrown artists such as the aforementioned Aitch and even The Smiths.
In fact, the store will also feature strictly Mancunian exclusives, too.
Everything from polo shirts and tees to branded mugs, matchboxes and other accessories will be available in-store only.
NQ is bound to be buzzing across launch weekend, with doors officially opening to the public on Sunday, and we wouldn’t be surprised if you see people camping outside the front well ahead of time.
What a moment the Manc shopping scene is having right now.
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied via Pear)
Style
Keo play Projekts: garage and grunge revivalists crush Manchester skatepark for new music video
Danny Jones
This past Thursday evening, fast-rising rock band Keo took over Projekts MCR skatepark for a special pop-up gig and to film a brand-new music video for their latest single, ‘Pistol’, starring some of their biggest fans here in Manchester.
In fact, it didn’t take long for us to suss out that plenty of them had flocked from far and wide to be there, and let’s say we’re sure they’ll say it was worth the journey.
We caught Keo’s well-attended festival set inside the Woodlands at Kendal Calling 2025, not to mention their completely sold-out show at the O2 Ritz back in March – their biggest headline date up to that point – and we’re more certain than ever that they’re going to be absolutely massive.
And if they keep up doing more memorable stuff like this, it’s just a matter of how soon…
Packing out Projekts to the point that people were literally hanging off fences and standing on electrical boxes at the side of the street to try and get a peek at the post-punk, grunge and garage rockers, some of their most enthusiastic young fans had been waiting outside the location as early as noon.
For context, doors opened six hours later, and the boys didn’t come on until 7:30pm.
Those who signed up to Keo‘s mailing list were sent information regarding securing a spot at the one-off performance earlier this month.
While you would have seen the place fill up even if they were just standard concert tickets, the fact that the band were taping the whole thing to use as the visuals for their newest single, as mentioned, meant that Keo’s avid followers were literally clamouring AND clambering to get the best view position possible.
Turning the popular skaters’ hub’s central bowl into a makeshift stage, with lights, camera, booms and various crew surrounding the entire venue, it was a surreal experience to say the least.
And, of course, they were absolutely brilliant – just as they were at the Ritz at the start of the year and Kendal before that, playing a short but sweet set that left everyone wanting more and choruses of punters chanting Keo long after the final song.
We can’t wait to see how the video itself turns out, especially seeing how much the people who wrapped around them and the skatepark were lost in the moment, and we’re also looking forward to them headlining Neighbourhood Fest in Manchester city centre this October.
You can grab a ticket to see them and the rest of the NBHD lineup right HERE, but until then, give the full studio version of ‘Pistol’ a play and get ready for their debut album.
The Manc -
26th November 2020 
