The second in my series of portraits of Chertsey shopkeepers is Claire the owner of The Dinky Dove, which opened two years ago this week. The Dinky Dove sells a range of gifts, cards and homeware and has built up a regular loyal customer base; in fact whilst I was there one of her regulars came in to “get her fix” as she called it!

I recently received a brochure through the post from a discount supermarket chain stating that they were considering opening a store in Chertsey where I live. This set me thinking about all the independently owned shops that are present in Chertsey and how they might be affected by the opening of this supermarket. There are a nice range of businesses in Chertsey including a butchers, bakers, green grocers, gift shop, florist, delicatessen, pet food shop, bike shop, electrical shop, hardware stores, pharmacist, and antique shop among others. These are all independently owned shops, some of whom have been in Chertsey for over thirty years.

I decided it would be good to celebrate these businesses and so have embarked upon a personal project to photograph these independent shopkeepers in their shops, would like to exhibit the final prints in one of the empty shops in the main street in Chertsey. I aim to emphasise what we have on our doorstep, in the hope that the residents of and visitors to Chertsey, embrace and support these local businesses.

I started with the most recent shop to open in Chertsey – The Chertsey Fruit & Veg Shop, which is owned by Sabba who hails from Syria but has been in the UK for twenty years, working in various restaurants, making his way up to restaurant manager, and in McLaren in Woking. Because of his experience with food Sabba is able to offer advice on his products including choosing the best orange for juicing or for eating! He has been open for just a few weeks and is open 7 days a week.