Shops / Shop of the Week
Shop of the Week: Poppers the Party Shop
Poppers the Party Shop isn’t just any old party shop, it’s an independent Italian owned, family-run, 20-year-old business.
It of course sells everything one might expect of a party store, fancy dress for adults and children, banners, party gear, decorations and balloons.
“No matter what kind of celebration you are planning for make sure we are your first port of call,” reads their homepage.
is needed now More than ever
There’s enough to look at to keep you busy all day – photos: Hannah Massoudi
Owner Giorgio, 72, started Poppers the Party Shop 20-years-ago after he decided he needed a change from spending the previous four decades in hospitality running his own restaurant. “Time flies when you’re having fun,” Giorgio quips.
He adds that he gave up the restaurant after missing out on a lot of family events. Some of them big milestones: “I missed family reunions, I couldn’t go to weddings and parties. I couldn’t go anywhere.
“I couldn’t put the children to bed, taking them to school in the morning, it causes problems obviously.
“At Christmas, most of the time I had work and it got much over the years. Then my wife divorced me because I was never home. I took notice of that.
“I tried to make amends, I packed up working in restaurants. I still miss it because it’s in my blood.”
Glitter and confetti for any occasion – photo: Hannah Massoudi
Giorgio took some time out to see his family, travel to Cornwall in his van take it easier, before deciding his next steps.
He spent some time looking around Bristol for inspiration, prior to becoming Poppers the Party Shop, it was a card shop, that Giorgio regularly brought from.
“I brought the shop without knowing what I wanted to do with my life.” All he knew he says, is that he couldn’t spend forever travelling and not working.”
The motivation to buy the former card shop was because the quality of the shopping experience at the store began to go “downhill really badly,” he says. The owner was an introvert he says as he paints me a mental picture of a man sat behind the counter using a newspaper to avoid making eye contact and small talk with his customers.
Giorgio was inspired to do something better.
A card for the Thomas Shelby fans eagerly awaiting the Peaky Blinders’ movie – photo: Hannah Massoudi
Initially he tells me, that he had ideas to turn the store into Italian wedding stores he entered as a child that left memories of being “mesmerised.”
He thought that he could replicate that with items such as Italian sweets and grander items such as a chandeliers. But the cost of shipping it over was for too expensive.
Shrek parties are the latest clubbing event craze and Poppers the Party Shop is well stocked – photo: Hannah Massoudi
He eventually landed on the current incarnation in a strange and unusual way. “I decided on about three or four random wigs. I put them on the wall and I remember a couple of days after they were gone,” he says.
Apparently baffled by the quick sale, he went out a brought some more, again, within several days the wigs were all gone.
From there he enquire into the party trade further, speaking to other party shop owners who instructed him to buy the classic, although by today’s definition potentially inappropriate costumes, such as a cowboy and Indian.
But it’s been getting better ever since he says.
Fun is to be had by all ages at the party shop – image: Hannah Massoudi
“I was one of the last people to open up one of these shops and I’ll probably be the last surviving,” he says reflectively.
These days, apparently people travel from afar to shop here, Birmingham and Bath to name a few, owing to the fact he says that there is “hardly any competition.”
But he says he’s looking forward to retirement.
“I made so many friends here,” he says proudly. Parents for example would come in for balloons for their young children, coming in every year he would see the same parents but the balloon number would increase as they aged.
“We were young when we first met,” he says with a hearty laugh and a glint in his eyes.
The store sits next door to Savers – photo: Hannah Massoudi
151 Gloucester Road, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8BA
Main photo: Hannah Massoudi
Read next:
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
