111 High Street
Midsteeple Quarter purchased 111 High Street in March 2021 following a successful Crowdfunder campaign, coupled with support from the Scottish Land Fund (National Lottery) and an anonymous local trust fund.
Bringing the building into community ownership has been a real catalyst in transforming its fortunes, taking it from a state of neglect to a thriving hub of entrepreneurship and creativity.
The ground floor and first floor is home to Flourish, operated by social enterprise The Guild Dumfries. The second floor has been turned into a photography and filming studio, known as The LOFT, run by local photographer Loilliography.
The enterprises began operating in 111 High Street in late 2021 following some essential refurbishment works on the building. Their success since is a huge source of pride in Dumfries.
Flourish
The ground floor of 111 High Street is the not-for-profit shop Flourish. It was opened by The Guild Dumfries as a more permanent retail space following a series of very successful pilot pop-up shops and their monthly makers markets.
Flourish - and other projects organised by The Guild - champions and supports makers, creatives and producers, mainly from across Dumfries and Galloway. They offer an affordable platform, opportunities and support to small businesses, allowing them to flourish and grow - an ethos which chimes perfectly with that of Midsteeple Quarter.
Flourish has also recently launched a refillery and zero waste department at the rear of the shop. It includes a range of zero waste and sustainable products. You can use the refillery to stock up on body care, cleaning products and store cupboard staples. They want to make sustainable shopping easy and accessible in Dumfries.
Flourish has proven to be a really positive addition to Dumfries High Street, selling items which cannot be found elsewhere in the town. Indeed, its success is award-winning, with The Guild Dumfries winning the prize for entrepreneurship in the 2022 Scotland Loves Local Awards.
Find out more about Flourish here.
Workshop and Community space
Flourish isn’t just a ground-floor shop. It also has a dedicated workshop and flexible meetings and events spaces, as well as offices, on the first floor.
These are home to a variety of activities and programmes of events, including creative workshops, after-school clubs, exhibitions and talks. The space has so far hosted everything from children’s art classes to a meeting involving MSPs on a fact-finding mission to events involving business and community groups.
Lolliography @ The LOFT
Brought back to life following decades of neglect, The LOFT is an industrial, creative and flexible studio space complete with two shooting bays - and even an extensively-equipped commercial kitchen.
Lolliography works with food and drink producers and top-class restaurants from across Dumfries and Galloway and beyond, as well as with some of the creatives / producers whose work is sold downstairs in Flourish.
Lolli is an award-winning food photographer and food stylist who has exhibited work internationally and brings a real artist’s eye to every image.
The LOFT has proven itself incredibly versatile, having been not only used for photoshoots, but also for filming - from a band recording a music video to fitness and wellness advice recordings.
Read more about Lolliography here.
