Independent Halesowen footwear brand opens new store at Merry Hill

It is the latest addition to Merry Hill’s thriving lifestyle clothing and accessories offering.

Sarah Wilkinson, founder and owner based in Halesowen, has been restoring and customising trainers since 2014.

Now, almost 10 years on, her business has grown significantly and has opened its first ever store – opting for Merry Hill as its preferred location – located next to H&M on the Upper Mall.

The customisations include personalised designs hand-painted by Sarah. Visitors can also give their best-loved shoes a new lease of life at the store, with a range of options available, from a thorough clean and midsole touch-up to a full restoration

In addition to its customisation offerings, Soley Grail Soley Customs have a collection of hand-picked trainers and limited-edition vintage kicks, as well as apparel and accessories from the likes of Nike, Adidas, Misery Worldwide and Supreme.

To celebrate the opening, the store is running a special offer during its opening week with £10 off shoe cleanings.

It follows on from the opening of global lifestyle brand Ted Baker, leading fashion brand H&M, luxury footwear and accessories specialists Kurt Geiger London, and global retailer Lids last year.

Jonathan Poole, centre manager, said: “We’re always looking to welcome exciting businesses that pioneer local independent skills, and Soley Grail Soley Customs does exactly that.

“This new store offers our visitors something truly unique; the combination of customisation, restoration and rare stock means our visitors can take their trainer choices to the next level and refresh some of their favourite shoes, giving them a new lease of life.”

Sarah Wilkinson, added: “We’re delighted to open our first store at Merry Hill and welcome new customers to see how we restore trainers in person. Real fans are going to love some of the rare pairs we have in the store right now, such as the Jordan 5 Retro Tokyo T23 first released in 2011, and the Nike Air Yeezy 1 Zen released back in 2009.

“As a sneakerhead with over 100 lus pairs in my collection, I know just how special people’s sneakers can be – it’s great to be able to bring my own and my customers’ designs to life.”