Fit & Stitch clothing alterations and repair shop opens in Havant to fulfil owners 'long-time dream'
Havant welcomes opening of new local business
A new clothing alterations shop promoting sustainability has opened in Havant fulfilling the “long-time dream” of a local woman.
Verity Horton, 30, grew up in the Hampshire town, even spending parts of her childhood in a craft shop in Havant where her mum worked. It introduced her to patterns, threads and sewing materials that would become the basis of her career.
She has now opened her very own alterations and repair shop called Fit & Stitch which held its grand opening at 10 Park Road South on Saturday, May 23. Having started doing alterations 12 years ago while undertaking her degree in fashion and textile design at the University of Portsmouth, the opening of the shop has been a long term aim for Verity.
She said: “This shop has been a long-time dream of mine, and I am incredibly proud to bring a service to the local area that focuses on quality craftsmanship, sustainability, and helping people make the most of the clothes they already own.
“It is a service that is really needed, people don’t really get taught it anymore in school. It’s an art that we are losing. A lot of people that have been doing it are moving on or retiring and there is a big gap in the market for people to learn as a trade. It is something that AI can’t do as well.
Verity added: “We provide an alterations repairs on clothes, anything from taking up a pair of trousers to replacing a zip on a jacket and all the way up to redesigning a wedding dress. At this time of year we are very busy with weddings.
“Each part of the year is busy for different seasons, this time of year is wedding season but at the end of the year we do lots of military clothing alterations ahead of Remembrance Day. The increase in use of weight loss jabs also means lots of people are looking to have their clothes re-fitted.”
Having only been open for a few days, Verity has been delighted with the response from the community.
She said: “It has been fantastic, the feedback has been really good about how the shop looks. All age ranges are coming in and it is turning into a nice community hub with lots of people coming in that want the old fashioned service with a nice chat. Then we have people coming in who want their dresses done for a night out so it’s really versatile and open to all ages.
“We have really been welcomed in Havant. It is definitely a service people are taking advantage of in the area and we are happy to help. I absolutely love it, I am in my element.”