Sweet like Honey: Stitching Leeds Together
In the first of our ‘Stitching Leeds Together’’ series, Jess Cooper talks to Amy Garth, owner of vintage fashion brand Honey.
We often love to discuss here at The Gryphon how much of an up-and-coming city Leeds is in regards to fashion, with one of our defining features being the influx of second-hand and sustainable clothing stores that can be found dotted around the city centre and the wider student areas. Independent hubs like the Corn Exchange serve as a home to some of the most unique and creative variants of these stores, including Honey.
Honey, run by Amy Garth with the store living on the top floor of the Corn Exchange, is a vintage shop that specialises in curating a nineties and noughties aesthetic, serving as a fan favourite with the y2k super-fans that can be seen roaming the streets of Hyde Park. The store also offers handmade clothing and accessories from independent designers and makers. Garth describes the handmade products as ‘quite alternative and punky’, but she makes an active effort to cater for a whole range of styles.
When asked about Leeds’ growing fashion scene, Garth is ‘definitely glad I’m based in Leeds’, having been born and bred in the city. She says she recognised there was a gap for a more curated, boutique style of y2k shop, especially with the style growing in popularity the past five years. Whilst some Leeds locals often reject the role of students in the creative scene, Garth celebrates it, acknowledging that because of the academic reputation feeling so huge, it leads to people ‘[bringing] their style from all over the country, continent or world’.
Small businesses like Honey, however, can often face backlash from shoppers for what they deem to be inflated prices. The one misconception that Honey wants to dispel is that local fashion business should match, or even be lower, than the high street shops, saying that ‘fast fashion has skewed everyone’s perception of value’. It is a fair point to make; behind every small business are everyday people who are trying to make a living and pay themselves a living wage, unlike some fast fashion giants who are willing to steal every penny they can from their workers.
The 90s and 2000s which inspire the curated collection within Honey offer many points of inspiration from the supermodels which reigned supreme, the resurgence of grunge, the sensuality of the female pop stars like Christina and Britney and the rise of the TV personality. For Garth, the latter serves as a style inspiration. She doesn’t have a specific style icon, but references the reality television trend that swept networks like MTV in the late nineties and early noughties. ‘I’m currently rewatching The Osbourne’s and Kelly was such a vibe!’
There is also such a big community feel around Honey, with customers often serving as outfit inspiration too. Shopping local can help foster this sense of community, whilst also helping the economy and the environment. Garth thinks that the younger generations ‘could set a better example for generations to come about the importance of shopping locally’, but also is aware that the critiques of shopping locally do stand strong, saying ‘it can be more expensive to shop that way, but I think making mindful decisions […] goes a long way!’
It is small businesses like Honey that are upholding the Leeds fashion scene by providing unique and thoughtful curations of clothing and if there is anything you can take away from any of our Fashion pieces here at The Gryphon, it would be to support them with your whole might, because if we aren’t careful, we might lose some of these treasure troves.
You can follow Honey on Instagram and TikTok on the handle @shophoneyyy or visit them in store at the top floor of the Corn Exchange, Call Lane, LS1 7BR, Leeds City Centre. Thanks to Amy Garth and Honey for agreeing to be featured in The Gryphon.
Words by Jess Cooper.