It has to be the most colourful shop in Dawlish. Enter Curios and you're surrounded by displays of brightly-hued clothes and accessories, ornaments, dreamcatchers and crystals, shiny jewellery, iridescent gemstones; countless fascinating items that you need to get a close look at to recognise their inherent qualities.

But rather than seeming cluttered or over-full, the shop has a strangely relaxing vibe, helped by the gentle smell of incense.

Owner Andy describes Curios as an 'ethical, cultural and lifestyle shop' selling 'rare, unusual or intriguing artefacts'. Ethical is the key word here; a lot of thought has gone into how the merchandise is sourced, manufactured and transported, even the packaging it arrives in. A lot of the products are made from recycled or natural materials.

Where the products come from

He explained: "We source our goods from wholesalers in the UK, but these guys go to artisan manufacturers in Indonesia, India, Thailand and Nepal; basically, they're small family-run factories, small production units, producing quite artistic products with character."

"Because they're such small family manufacturing hubs they're not pressured by the stress of big corporates to bash out any old product regardless of how it looks; there's a bit of uniqueness and character to it all, which is quite a nice thing really.

"The wholesalers we use are mostly Fair Trade certified, while some suppliers have their own standards, promoting 'ethically sourced' or 'fairly traded' business ethics."

"What it means is that they will go to the factories. With their buying power they can demand to see the manufacturing floor; to see who's working there, if there's any child labour involved, checking the working conditions, while communicating with workers as to whether they are paid a fair wage. And my wholesalers will get the price from the manufacturer and pay it, it's always a fair price for them."

"We're trying to support companies with an ethical stance on sourcing goods."

Inspired by artisan objects seen on his travels

Curios has been open since July 2014, but the seeds of the business were sown a few years earlier. Andy and his partner had been travelling on and off across Asia and Europe, living and working here and there, enjoying the various cultures, learning different ways of life.

He said: "I think that's where the birth of the shop began to materialise in my mind. Across Asia and Europe, we visited plenty of trinket and gift shops searching for treasures and stuff we hadn't seen before; we were like, 'wow, all these artisan objects, all really picturesque, and together so colourful!' That mindset was something I had the opportunity to take to the next level, so I owe a big thanks to everyone who has supported me on this journey."

As well as trading successfully in Dawlish, Curios has expanded into a festival outlet, trading at local festivals Snooky Fest and Glas-Denbury. The Curios family say they can't wait to attend these again in the future, to 'set up shop in a field and dance under the sun again'.

Dawlish's shoppers might have to do without the colour of Curios during the current lockdown, but Andy is still trading through his website [L]https://www.curios.me.uk/[L+}Curios[.L] and offering home deliveries in the local area, with a click and collect service. Any requests contact email: [email protected]