Newsletter May 2023

Sparks opens its doors!

We did it! After months of hard work, we were so excited to open our doors on 13th May and welcome you into our department store with a difference! Our grand opening witnessed an incredible turnout, with over 8,000 of you flooding in to experience our innovative shopping and visitor destination. We cut the ribbon together with our incredible team of partner organisations who helped to make this ambitious project a reality.

Putting the ART back into depARTment store

"Welcome to the future! We are putting the ART back in the depARTment store," exclaimed Invisible Circus Ringmaster, Doug, as bouncing kangaroos spilled onto the streets at our ribbon-cutting ceremony. “We’re selling products by sustainable producers, promoting reuse and recycling and breathing fresh life into our city centre,” said Jenny from Global Goals Centre. And Kathryn from Artspace Lifespace said "We are blown away by the positive reaction to Sparks Bristol. The store exuded an incredible atmosphere over the weekend.”

What you’ve been saying

Since opening our doors, we’ve loved welcoming you into our store and hearing your thoughts about the space. "We are so lucky they are bringing something like this to Bristol," commented one visitor whilst others described it as a vibrant, distinctive addition to the city. Yahya, aged 8, said "It's so good you've got this space for us to learn about recycling and mending and technology. And I got to drive a bus! I love it!"

Come and visit us!

We’re open every week, 11am-6pm Wednesday to Saturday and 11am-5pm Sunday at 78 Broadmead, Bristol, BS1 3DS. Sparks is still a work in progress so we’ve got plenty of new things to come including our repair cafe and the launch of the Department of Imagination. So do pop down and keep an eye on our website to see what’s going on in-store and plan your visit.

Book a unique school workshop

This week we were excited to welcome our first schools’ workshop into the Department of Discovery. If you’re an educator looking for a unique learning experience, then you’ve come to the right place! In our education hub, Global Goals Centre are offering range of workshops centred around themes of fashion, food, nature, travel and migration. For more details and to book a workshop, visit our website now.

Thank you volunteers!

And of course, we couldn’t do any of this without our dedicated volunteers who have stepped into their roles at lightning speed. We’re thrilled to have over 40 volunteers already signed up, but there’s always room for more! At our launch weekend, one volunteer said, "The positivity and sense of community was radiating in Bristol today. It was lush to be part of the volunteering team, what a warm and friendly bunch!" Click the link below to join our volunteer team and help keep Sparks running.

How you can help

Sparks has been created from donated and recycled materials but now we need resources and people-power to keep it running! A donation to Sparks could make all the difference, no matter how small. £20 could pay for a volunteer to help run Sparks for a day, £50 could help provide a school workshop to inspire the next generation and £100 could help with the building's running costs and keep the doors open. Thank you for your support.