Stockport, home of the Hat Works, Robinsons Brewery and Strawberry Studios, has undergone quite the transformation in recent years. Increased investment and interest in the market town has brought with it a slew of new and exciting businesses - from French bistros and trendy coffee shops to live music venues and buzzing food markets.
And the latest indie addition to Stockport's burgeoning food and drink scene is just as unique as the rest. Located on Great Underbank just over from the Merseyway Post Office, Inner Vision Collective Cafe isn’t your typical coffee shop.
As well as serving up freshly brewed coffee and baked goods, this new coffee shop also houses a tattoo parlour, a piercing studio, and even a barber shop. While the latter isn’t quite up and running yet - they’re currently on the search for a couple of barbers to rent the chairs - tattoos and piercings are already available, and their books are quickly filling up.
Created by Jordan, formerly a construction site manager from Dumfries, and his friend Jay, the two tattooists wanted to create a space, “where people can, without judgement, be assisted in becoming exactly who they want to be”. The pair previously set up a studio together in Stockport.
But with the rising popularity of beauty-based modification and tattoo culture, not to mention the nation’s love of caffeine, they felt that the town centre would be the perfect place to broaden their vision and create a collective where they could bring this all together.
“We love Stockport - I love that it’s up-and-coming and there's a lot of independent businesses,” says Jordan. "We had been looking to move into a town centre location but it was going to cost us a fortune and then we came across the space that was already a café.
"We thought we could bring multiple businesses together and not rip people off.” In a short space of time, Jay and Jordan have created a space where like-minded creatives can come together to work on their craft and express themselves freely.
“We’re quite spiritual people in the sense that we just want people to be happy so we wanted to create an environment where people could be a part of that.”
As you step into the shop, there’s a real underground, hipster feel to the space, with comfy sofas to sip coffee on, as well as tables and chairs for those who want to do a bit of work while they wait for a tattoo, piercing or haircut. There’s also displays near to where the coffee and food is served, with merchandise available for purchase.
“Another side we want to branch off into is the clothing. So at the moment we’ve just got a small selection of clothing with the company logo on it, but eventually be want to collaborate with other people and artists so we can have their designs on the clothes, and we would just sort the printing out.
“Art and culture obviously plays a big role for us, so we’ve got a lot of things on display in the shop. But we’ve got some artists from around the UK coming to paint on the walls and floors, so the coffee shop by the end of August is going to be like a gallery.”
For those booked in for piercings and tattoos, beyond the reception there’s a tattoo studio and piercing room, while the barbers chairs also have their own dedicated space. “What we think separates us from other tattoo studios and barbers shops is that we’ve just taken it and divided up the rent so it’s really cheap for everyone.
“We just wanted to come together with people that are like us, who want to grow their businesses and are like minded. There’s quite a lot of ego in our industry, people judging each other's work and all that, so we just wanted to do away with that. And then the coffee shop was just a bonus.”
Due to health and safety the café can’t prepare its own food because of the different aspects of the business operating in the space. However, they have partnered with a local business to provide delicious savoury items including the Spanish chorizo, mature cheddar and sun-blushed tomato panini, which they can warm up for people.
The £5 meal deal - any savoury item from the fridge and any large hot drink - is already proving to be very popular. And, with two baristas operating the café, those in need of a good coffee are in good hands.
Using Kickback Coffee Roasters - a roastery based in Pott Shrigley - the baristas can often be found working their coffee art magic to create cappuccinos, mochas and flat whites as visually appealing as Jay and Jordan’s tattoos. Iced coffees, smoothies, and teas from Wee Tea Company, are also available, and go down well with their selection of bakes like the espresso caramel brownies, cinnamon swirls and sticky lemon buns.
For many of the businesses that have opened in Stockport’s Old Town over the last couple of years, it's been far from plain sailing due to the pandemic and the rising cost of living crisis. But, for those that have stuck around, the strong independent spirit and commitment to creating unique shopping and dining experiences is clear. With a vision and unique offering, Jay and Jordan have found a great community to bed down in and are already well on their way to creating a space where everyone feels welcome.
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