Reflections, Questions, and Decisions

As we look ahead to the next chapter of our story, we want to bring you with us from the very beginning.

Late summer 2025 finds us approaching our tenth anniversary of opening in Chester, and it’s made us think a lot about our journey and what it has meant to us.

Why we do what we do

We love our work. For many artists like Alison, art is embedded so deep in their DNA that they simply don’t retire. It’s a vocation, a calling. Beyond what it means to us, we know what it means to you too - it has been a pleasure and a privilege to be part of our customers’ lives, whether one of Alison’s paintings has marked a special moment, or hangs on your wall to take you to your happy place when you can’t be there in person.

So don’t worry, the paint brushes will not be drying up any time soon.

A decade of change

If you’d told us ten years ago what would happen in the world during that time, I doubt we would have believed you. For several reasons, the city centre retail landscape is almost unrecognisable from a decade ago, with shopping habits changed completely.

Against that background we found ourselves with some thinking to do, and a decision to make - possibly quite a big one. How can we navigate a changing world, embrace new shopping habits, and improve further on what we hope is already an engaging and enjoyable customer experience?

What’s changed for our customers

First, since the pandemic there has been a huge change in the way customers use the high street and find businesses like ours. Gone are the days of mass browsing and passing trade, the majority of our sales nowadays are to customers who find us online then pay us a visit. We do online shopping of course - with free UK delivery - but art is a very personal thing and you can’t beat seeing it for real before you purchase.

Second, customers’ appetite for paying city centre parking charges and walking through town with large expensive items under their arm is not what it used to be. We know, because you keep telling us - and we’re glad you do, so we can address it.

Third, the nature of the high street itself is clearly changing rapidly. What used to be a major shopping centre is fast becoming dominated by hospitality, not because the planners want it but because the people want it. You have to embrace change on this scale, and move with it.

Fourth, we cannot ignore the changes in customers’ financial well-being since the events of 2022. We opened our first gallery at the height of the 2008 crash and we’ve seen plenty of ups and downs since, so we know these things do pass in time, but a reduction in overheads can only help us to weather future storms better and continue to serve you. Let’s face it, an 800 year old listed building on a city centre high street was never going to be the bargain option when it comes to running costs!

Finally, we have noticed over the years that so many of you love to meet the artist and/or framer when we’re in the gallery. Believe us when we say that is a very special thing, and it means the world to us. Unfortunately though, it often isn’t possible because we have to be offsite at the studio to make the things you want to buy.

Finding the answer

So there you have it. These are the questions we’ve been wrestling with for a couple of years now as the end of our lease approached.

Can we find a solution that addresses all the above, that builds our online footprint, and gives a better face-to-face customer experience than we have now?

Yes. Yes we can - and yes we have.

The cliffhanger

Thank you for reading this first post about our big new adventure, and we hope you’ll keep in touch as the project develops over the next few months.

We now know roughly what the next phase of Alison Bradley Gallery looks like, and we’re really excited about it.

We also know roughly where it will be, but we haven’t identified an exact location yet.

We’ll leave you with that cliffhanger...

We’d love you to join us on this adventure. You can follow along here by bookmarking this blog, or sign up for our email updates in the subscribe box below 👇 so you’ll be the first to hear what’s next, right up to the day we open our new doors.