Shops come and shops go; but only a favoured few become genuine Leicester Classics. In the first of an occasional series, Linda Steelyard confesses to being a member of the, erm, Set.

Okay, we’ll admit it. Most of us have an occasional moan about shopping in Leicester. “Wish we still had that branch of .” “We could really do with a thingummy – they’ve got one in Nottingham.”

They’re soon forgotten, though, because we know that for every minor whinge there’s a great big pile of stuff to celebrate.

There’s Highcross, for instance, which means we no longer have to travel to another city when we fancy a dose of John Lewis, Zara, Carluccio’s or any of the other delights that its brought to Leicester.

We’ve got the characterful Fenwick. The only branch of the 130-year-old department store chain in the Midlands, it is in one of the city’s landmark buildings, is packed with interesting brands and has been serving discerning shoppers for half a century.

And we’ve oodles of top-quality independents.

In fact, we’re so loved up with shopping in Leicester at the moment that we’ve decided to put the Counter

Culture spotlight on our Leicester Classics – the long-standing stores we have a schoolgirl (or boy) crush on.

We’re starting with Set, which has been in the city for 15 years, first in High Street, and now in St Martin’s Square.

We could sum up Set as “the ultimate treat shop”.

Its heart might belong to contemporary design and cheeky monkey quirkiness, but we reckon you could find a gift for every member of your family here.

And not just any old “that’ll do” gift, but a gift that perfectly taps into their taste. Now that’s an achievement.

Set sells all sorts of things, but every item is designed to put some fun, style and colour into your life.

Its huge collection of jewellery ranges from in-your-face designer styles (you’d be hard pushed to find a better selection of contemporary watches by fashionable brands) to delicate, vintage-inspired pieces.

Kitchenware starts with items by collectable Italian design brand Alessi, and concludes with mugs bearing Scrabble letters.

There are handy gadgets to make life that little bit easier, things for youngsters to cuddle, pretty purses and stylish bags and unusual goodies that exist just to amuse and entertain (glasses that make your eyes look funny, balloons you can mould into dinosaurs, that sort of thing).

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg! It packs a lot in for a little ’un.

Our favourite items when we visited included Alessi’s super-cute Banana Brothers and Paradise Birds salt and pepper sets, Momiji dolls and mugs, anything with an owl on, heart-shaped measuring spoons, a charm bracelet and all of the amazing-looking cameras (not digitals – film cameras that make photography itself fun).

It’s a wonderful buffet of lovely things, and we hope we’re still spending our pennies there 15 years from now.

Info

Set is in St Martin’s Square, Leicester. There is a second “clearance” branch just across the square.

As you might already be aware if you remember Set hitting the headlines a few years ago when one of its Christmas cards caused offence to a passing shopper, it isn’t frightened of the occasional swear word.

Just so you know…