Wear’s here – and it’s brought new life to a well-known spot on Vine Place.
The city centre’s newest coffee hotspot has opened its doors after transforming the former Aphrodite site.
But it’s brewing up more than coffees and cakes, with half the unit selling a mix of designer vintage clothing as well as a selection of new items.
Meanwhile, the upstairs rooms will be turned into the office and workshop space for AutismAble, a specialist service and wellbeing centre for neurodivergent people across the region.
The building was purchased by AutismAble after Sarah Farrell-Forster, CEO of AutismAble and Sea Change, saw its potential to bring a multi-purpose offering to the city.
Sarah already oversees Sea Change in South Shields and the Winter Gardens and the coffee shop side of the business is a sister site to the other Sea Changes, serving coffees, teas, matcha, cakes and sandwiches, the latter of which are made at the large Winter Gardens kitchen.
As with the other Sea Change sites, Wear gives hospitality jobs and experience to people who are neurodivergent.
As part of the Wear offering, a new bar has been created by local joiner Adams Bespoke, which serves bottled craft beers and cocktails, as well as new facilities including a disabled toilet to make the space accessible to all.
The retail side, meanwhile, stocks brands such as Stone Island, Burberry, Dior and more as well as retro sports clothing, accessories and new items.
Co-managers Daniel Price and Harrison Farrell-Forster have spent the past few months curating the clothing, with some really unique pieces on offer.
“We had a launch party two weeks but actually opened officially last Thursday,” explained Sarah. “It’s still early days but the response so far has been great – people say they love the buzz of the place.
“What we’ve also noticed is a real mix of ages coming in, which we’re really pleased about, we want Wear to be for everyone.”
The name of the shop is pronounced like ‘wear’ clothing, but is also, obviously, a heteronym of the city’s river.
The retail side of Wear will also soon be launching a website.
“People have said it’s great to see an independent shop opening in the city centre,” added Sarah.
Wear is also equipped with decks and will be hosting DJ nights, as well as other live music events.
Article by Katy Wheeler, Sunderland Echo
