Books & PrintGlasgow
Category Is Books
A fiercely independent queer bookshop built around books, history, art and solidarity.
Visit the shop #category-is-booksFROM THE BIC TOOLKITSmall useful things built in response to a slightly broken internet.
A HUMAN-CURATED INDEPENDENT BUSINESS DIRECTORY
The InternetHigh Street
Independent businesses. Actual websites. No algorithm required.
Search is very good at helping you find exactly what you're looking for. This isn't. Wander around a collection of independent UK businesses and see where you end up.
01 / WHAT IS THIS?
A directory you browse, not interrogate.
The Internet High Street is a human-curated collection of independent UK businesses, online shops and commercial websites worth visiting. There is no giant marketplace in the middle and no ranking system quietly arranging the shelves.
Google helps you find what you're looking for. The Internet High Street is for finding something you weren't. Browse by department, choose a random destination or simply keep walking.
THE DIRECTORY / 36 PLACES
Start wandering
Browse the whole street or take a turn into one department. The order is editorial, not paid. Nobody has slipped us a fiver for a corner unit.
Choose a department
Showing 36 places
NO RECOMMENDATION ENGINE INSTALLED
Send me somewhere interesting
One press chooses a place from the department you are currently browsing. It will not know you, learn from you or follow you around afterwards.
Destination pending. The algorithm is having the day off.
Books & PrintLeeds & Manchester
Village
Art books, photography, fashion titles and small-press zines selected with a very good eye.
Visit the shop #village-booksBooks & PrintBath
Mr B's Emporium
A labyrinthine bookshop with reading subscriptions, surprise books and actual human recommendations.
Visit the shop #mr-bs-emporiumBooks & PrintLondon
Gay's The Word
The UK's oldest LGBT+ bookshop: community space, events venue and excellent online bookseller.
Visit the shop #gays-the-wordBooks & PrintExeter
Bookbag
A small, welcoming bookshop with global fiction, independent presses and a smattering of vinyl.
Visit the shop #bookbagRecords & MusicCardiff
Spillers Records
A Cardiff institution claiming the title of the world's oldest record shop, still making noise.
Visit the shop #spillers-recordsRecords & MusicManchester
Vinyl Exchange
Two floors of new, used and rare records, CDs and musical rabbit holes in the Northern Quarter.
Visit the shop #vinyl-exchangeRecords & MusicBirmingham
Swordfish Records
A long-running independent record shop with deep stock, live sessions and proper musical knowledge.
Visit the shop #swordfish-recordsRecords & MusicChester
Grey n Pink Records
New, second-hand and collectable vinyl from a shop that has been digging through crates for decades.
Visit the shop #grey-n-pink-recordsRecords & MusicLeeds
Norman Records
An online record shop for adventurous ears, with reviews written by people who actually listened.
Visit the shop #norman-recordsHome & DesignBelfast
Maven
Furniture, lighting and homeware chosen by two sisters for homes rather than mood boards.
Visit the shop #mavenHome & DesignManchester
Form
A calm little shop celebrating independent makers, useful objects and things made thoughtfully.
Visit the shop #formHome & DesignLeeds
Colours May Vary
Graphic art, typography, books, prints and design objects that make browsing feel productive.
Visit the shop #colours-may-varyHome & DesignBristol
Mon Pote
Scandinavian interiors mixed with British and European makers in a cheerful Bristol shop.
Visit the shop #mon-poteHome & DesignLondon
Present & Correct
Office sundries elevated into an art form by two designers with a weakness for old stationery.
Visit the shop #present-and-correctHome & DesignLondon
North Street Potters
A shared studio and shop selling useful, individual pottery made behind the storefront.
Visit the shop #north-street-pottersClothing & CraftRobin Hood's Bay
Bertie's of Bay
Yorkshire coastal clothing that revives ganseys, smocks and other excellent fisherman-shaped things.
Visit the shop #berties-of-bayClothing & CraftUK
Cow Vintage
Handpicked vintage clothing, reworked pieces and a colourful route away from fast fashion.
Visit the shop #cow-vintageClothing & CraftSouthampton
Beatnik Emporium
Vintage, retro and gloriously quirky clothing from an independent shop trading since the early 1990s.
Visit the shop #beatnik-emporiumClothing & CraftBlackburn
Community Clothing
Straightforward clothes made in UK factories, designed to keep skills and jobs in production.
Visit the shop #community-clothingClothing & CraftHebden Bridge
HebTroCo
British-made trousers, jackets and knitwear sold with character and an allergy to blandness.
Visit the shop #hebtrocoClothing & CraftCardigan
Hiut Denim Co.
Jeans made in a Welsh town that knows denim, with free repairs for the life of the garment.
Visit the shop #hiut-denimClothing & CraftBrighton
Lucy & Yak
Colourful dungarees and comfortable clothes from an independent brand that refuses beige anonymity.
Visit the shop #lucy-and-yakFood & DrinkSuffolk
Hodmedod's
British-grown beans, grains and pulses from people rebuilding overlooked bits of the food system.
Visit the shop #hodmedodsFood & DrinkOrford
Pump Street Chocolate
A Suffolk bakery making bean-to-bar chocolate, including bars that involve actual sourdough crumbs.
Visit the shop #pump-street-chocolateFood & DrinkBrighton
Bird & Blend
Loose-leaf tea blended with curiosity, from sticky-chai experiments to shops built for sniffing tins.
Visit the shop #bird-and-blendFood & DrinkWest Yorkshire
Dark Woods Coffee
A speciality coffee roastery in a converted mill on the edge of the Yorkshire Pennines.
Visit the shop #dark-woods-coffeeFood & DrinkGlasgow
Oaka Supercity
An independent Asian supermarket packed with ingredients from across East and Southeast Asia.
Visit the shop #oaka-supercityPublishing & IdeasLondon
Delayed Gratification
A quarterly slow-journalism magazine that waits for the dust to settle before reporting the news.
Visit the shop #delayed-gratificationPublishing & IdeasLondon
Stack Magazines
A subscription and shop devoted to independent magazines you probably would not find by accident.
Visit the shop #stack-magazinesPublishing & IdeasManchester
The Modernist
Magazine, shop and small cultural organisation celebrating twentieth-century modernist architecture.
Visit the shop #the-modernistPublishing & IdeasUK
91 Editions
Independent magazines and beautifully specific guides to creative homes, places and people.
Visit the shop #91-editionsOutdoors & CompanionsNottinghamshire
Alpkit
Employee-owned outdoor kit, repair stations and an admirably direct instruction to go nice places.
Visit the shop #alpkitOutdoors & CompanionsLeeds
Restrap
Bikepacking bags and cycling luggage designed, cut and finished by hand in Yorkshire.
Visit the shop #restrapOutdoors & CompanionsKent
Hiro + Wolf
Bold pet collars, leads and accessories handmade in Britain for animals with some self-respect.
Visit the shop #hiro-and-wolfOutdoors & CompanionsYorkshire
The Innocent Hound
A family-run maker of air-dried dog food and treats from its own human-grade kitchen.
Visit the shop #the-innocent-houndSEND SOMEONE DOWN THE ROAD
Links work better when people use them.
Share the street, or share a shop's anchor link directly. Every listed business has its own front door on this page.
02 / WHY BUILD A STREET?
Because the link should take you somewhere.
Search engines, marketplaces, feeds and AI interfaces increasingly keep discovery inside their own walls. A direct visit gives an independent business the chance to explain itself on internet it actually controls.
They must appear independently owned, have a working HTTPS website and offer something distinctive enough to reward a wander. Big chains, thin affiliates, dropship fog and generic filler stay off the street.
No. The street is curated for interesting independent websites. Inclusion is not a warranty, financial recommendation or guarantee. Do the ordinary checks you would before buying from anywhere new.
03 / AN EXPERIMENT IN ACTUAL TRAFFIC
Can an unfashionable old link still do useful work?
Businesses spend increasing amounts of time trying to appear inside search results, social feeds and AI answers. This street tests a simpler proposition: put an interesting website in front of a curious person and give them a clear door out.
BIC records anonymous outbound-click events through its existing analytics. Each visit also carries ordinary referral tags, so a listed business may recognise traffic from the High Street in its own analytics. That measures visits, not sales, revenue or destiny. If the street sends useful traffic, BIC will publish what it learns.