We meet two independent traders in the Leeds Corn Exchange who are gearing up for the festive season.
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00:00Hey, I'm Stephen Roper. I co-own the gallery with my mum, Anne.
00:05Family business, been here for 10 years, Evergreen Gallery. I'm an artist jeweler.
00:09Everything we sell is driven by one vision, and that is it's inspired by nature
00:17and it's made by professional makers in their sheds in the UK.
00:22And we have our studio in the gallery here, so I'm always, always, always,
00:27seven days a week, working at my bench.
00:29And you can see me if you peep through the studio window at the back of the shop.
00:33Quite a surprise to some people. One minute they're looking at a piece of pottery
00:37and they realise they're looking through the window at me working.
00:40My name is Amy Garth. I am the owner of Honey, which is a vintage shop in the Corn Exchange.
00:48Been open for about eight months now, so still pretty new.
00:52Specialising in hand-picked Y2K vintage and also loads of handmade stuff as well.
00:59It's my first Christmas here at the Corn Exchange, so I don't know what it will be like.
01:04I'm hoping it will be good and busy. I have tried to get a lot of gifty bits in.
01:09People often don't realise, but you step off the street into the Corn Exchange
01:13and it's like a wonderful palace. It's like a fairy tale.
01:17It's just the most incredible place you could ever walk into.
01:20The Corn Exchange has been like a perfect place for me to set up my shop.
01:24I think it's really kind and welcoming and it's just a gorgeous place to be.
01:29What people are drawn to more and more is the fact that,
01:33I mean just the very fact that a lot of love has gone into the making of every piece
01:37because it's made by a maker in a shed in this country
01:41and buying their products means you're supporting their life.
01:45It's a world apart once you get into the Christmas season.
01:48There's a huge adrenaline rush, hugely exhausting,
01:51and I know when I enter into the four to six week period,
01:55it's going to be something else altogether.
01:57Very hard work, but rewarding. Lovely to see people.