It’s no secret that Norwich is home to an amazing independent scene, even more so thanks to the city’s creativity and sense of community. One of the best places to experience our indie spirit is in the Royal Arcade in the heart of the city centre. It’s telling that it celebrated its 125th anniversary last year!
An attraction in itself, its beautiful Art Nouveau architecture was designed by renowned local architect George Skipper, the Royal Arcade is home to unique lifestyle and beauty stores, a fine art gallery, eateries and more. There’s something for every type of shopper. And, with thoughtfully crafted windows to entice you in, you’ll find it difficult to leave without treating yourself!
Here, we meet the owners of Sonkai, Lazy Lobster and B’Leaf, all stores to explore in the Royal Arcade!
You can watch the jewellers in Sonkai at work in the Royal Arcade!
Sonkai has been based in the Royal Arcade for five and a half years now and we’re so glad that we made the move! It’s such a central location and the influx of exciting new businesses has brought a greatly increased footfall. Norwich residents, visitors and holidaymakers take their time to wander through and that’s great for raising awareness of what we do.
We’re surrounded by glorious Art Nouveau tiles and glasswork in the building and the sweeping lines and curves characteristic of that era are a great inspiration for our flowing organic designs. Shortly after moving in, we created some pieces specifically featuring stylised angel wings as a nod to the beautiful angel figure gracing the Castle Street entrance.
For many people, the process of making jewellery remains a mystery and so the open workshop never fails to fascinate visitors! Having a highly skilled goldsmith working onsite is a rarity these days and we feel it’s important to showcase our abilities.
The three of us have slightly different tastes, so Craig favours the Brewery Tap, which has great beer and great company, Mallory loves Mousehold Heath for a little tranquil pocket of green in an otherwise bustling city, and for Susan it’s Jarrolds for both retail therapy and a lovely glass of plonk with nibbles in their wonderful wine bar!
Lazy Lobster is packed with fun and funky homeware
Norwich’s creative community definitely inspired us. We knew people here would get behind something fun, bold and a bit different. We’d seen cool shops in Brighton and London and thought, why not bring a splash of pink to Norwich? From the start, we wanted Lazy Lobster to be a safe, inclusive space where everyone feels welcome (and has a lot of fun too!) and we think we’ve achieved that!
We fell in love with the Royal Arcade’s beautiful Art Nouveau design – it felt like the perfect match for our brand. Being surrounded by other independents was a big draw too. There’s such a lovely sense of community here and we feel lucky to be part of it!
People in Norwich love something a bit different and our pieces let them show off their personality at home. There’s definitely a growing trend for bold, expressive interiors and we think people are really leaning into colour and fun. Plus, getting to be creative whilst supporting cool, independent brands makes it even better!
We’re big foodies, so weekends usually involve grabbing something delicious! We love Don Txoko, Yard, Tallow, Ora Wellness Cafe and Café 33. A game or two at Slice and Dice is always a good shout too. Norwich has so many great spots, it’s hard to choose!
For all your plant needs, head to B’Leaf. Don’t forget to check out upstairs too!
We moved to Norwich almost a year ago as we were lacking the footfall we needed for our business to thrive and after seeing the city, all of the independent businesses and diversity, we thought that Norwich would be a good fit for us.
B’Leaf works well in the Arcade because of the beautiful building and architecture. Not to mention all the other lovely little independent businesses that are here!
We are always available for any help or advice either face–to–face in the shop or on social media! There are certain plants in the shop that we will give care guides for, so our customers have the confidence to care for their plants once they get them home. We want our customers to be able to look after their plants well and enjoy them.
Although there are more places we’d still like to visit, we like Plantation Garden and Sheringham Park closer to the Norfolk coast and we enjoy our walk around Eaton Park after school. This year we aim to take some time to visit more of the beautiful green spaces in Norwich!
The Royal Arcade is open daily from 8am. Please check its website for each store’s individual opening times.
