A BUSINESS group has bought a space in a town’s High Street to help burgeoning arts and crafts vendors.

The Manningtree District Business Chamber acquired the unit, which was formerly an office, gallery and craft shop.

When the lease came up in October an opportunity rose to use the space, which is now called The Tree, to promote makers and artists who may not be able to afford a shop of their own.

Steve Tattam, chairman of the chamber, said: “We called it The Tree because we are in Manningtree which comes from the home of ‘Many Trees’.

“Plus, we see this as a space to grow businesses and will have many branches under one canopy.

“The shop is occupied as Christmas gifting from fairtrade and local makers until the end of December when we will be looking for new people who want an opportunity to have a prime high street presence.”

There have been several pop up shops in the town previously and some new shops have opened in the past year which have proven to be popular.

Among these are the Stour Store, NaviStitch and the B-House Gallery which offers space to hire in addition to the Manningtree Emporium which offers space for antiques and vintage items.

Manningtree is also known for unique shop ideas such as Steve’s own shop Winyl which is an independent wine and vinyl record store.

The Tree is based between Tesco Express and Frippery and is among several ideas and projects the Manningtree District Business Chamber is working on to connect small businesses with residents.

Steve added: “The Manningtree District Business Chamber is here to encourage footfall into town and support local businesses.

“We run the Saturday market, the vintage street markets and other events through the year.

“When so many high streets have vacant units or are turning into chain stores, we want to maintain an independent and boutique offering.”

For more information on The Tree contact the Manningtree District Business Chamber by visiting mdbc.co.uk/contact-us/.