Our Story

Freda & Bert started out once upon a time, as a small barn shop at Burwash Manor called ‘The Manor Gift Shop’. We jumped at the opportunity to move into a bigger space and so became sister shops with our Florist over at Burwash.

Since then, we have excitingly expanded our small business, growing from one itty bitty indie shop, into two large ‘Freda & Bert’ stores, one located at the beloved Burwash Manor and the other at a very exciting new space ‘Ben’s Yard’ in Ely.

Dawn, the owner of Freda & Bert, has a love for not only her first passion of floristry but for buying products she would love to give or receive herself.

As a shop, we pride ourselves in supporting not only indie wholesalers, but small businesses and local makers too.

Open 7 days a week, we’re made up of a small, supportive team of staff who have a great passion for finding the perfect gift and love to stay creative…(we love a flatly, which you can probably guess from our Instagram!) This idea of curating all the gifts together in one big picture to show off our wares on Instagram is special to us. We often follow a colour theme or showcase one particular range of products; it’s one of our favourite things to do and we have a great swag bag under the till with an array of pompoms, stars, confetti and ribbons to add that extra touch!

We’re happy to wrap your gifts and can offer advice on all kinds of things from this season’s best sellers to what a 16 year old girl might like, to what’s easiest to post to Australia.

A Message From Dawn

‘I love going to all the trade shows, as many as I can throughout the year. They still excite me, meeting new companies and new makers, seeing new products and having the chance to actually meet our current suppliers, who I may have only spoken to via email - I want to tell them how amazing they are! Seeing the new colour palettes, product packaging and trend predictions… I LOVE IT! I have to go down every single aisle (there’s often over 60) just in case I miss something, I have been known to walk over 15 miles at a trade show!

It makes my day when our customers compliment us as a shop, on the lovely and unusual collection of gifts we stock, that they haven’t seen the products anywhere else, or just telling me how wonderful the shop is, so THANK YOU!’

Why 'Freda And Bert'?

Our shop name, Freda & Bert, is named after Dawn's grandparents - there is a special story from Dawn below, shopkeeping runs in the family...

Dear Granny (Freda) and Grandad (Bert),

I have so many happy memories of time spent with you down in Devon, it always seemed like the longest car journey in the world to come and visit you (especially when I was little!) but the most exciting journey as I got to see you two at the end of it, the sweetest grandparents you could ask for

I remember I would spend hours and hours playing shops with you, especially shoe shops and handbag shops... Granny you certainly had the best shoe and handbag collection to play with.

I also remember helping with the table top sales you used to organise for charity events, my favourite part was when you would show me the best way to display all the products.

I know you used to own your own newsagents shop in Plymstock (way before I was born) and I would love listening to your stories about it. I would say shopkeeping definitely runs in the family and I LOVE that I'm able to say that, I hope you would too!

When you passed away many years ago, it was such a sad time for us all. I remember sitting looking through all the photos of us together,  all the letters and cards we sent to each other in-between visits ( I have kept them all !) and just reminiscing of all our wonderful times together.

Thank you so much for the gift that you left to me, I chose to invest it in my first  shop , which then lead to another shop and now leads to my new shop venture.

Without you I wouldn't have started out on this journey and without you, I certainly don't think I would have the love of shops and shopping that I do.

Oh how I wish you were here to see my shops - the thoughts of your smiling faces, the endless hugs and your comforting Devon accents.

I hope you would be proud of me.

So this is for you with love, Granny and Grandad I'm naming my gift shops in memory of you both

"Freda and Bert"

With endless love

Dawn x