New shop coming to Bexhill - here’s when it opens

Maybugs, the East Sussex-based independent gift retailer is to open a brand new store in the town centre.

This will be the company’s third store, after the opening of the Hailsham branch in 2018 and its Eastbourne shop last year.

Maybugs is owned by Greg Rose and John Dale.

Maybugs in Bexhill will open towards the end of June in Devonshire Road in the former British Bookshops and Stationers shop.

The new store opening will create six permanent jobs, as well as several seasonal positions.

On announcing the opening of the new branch, Greg said: “We are thrilled to be bringing Maybugs to Bexhill. Last year we conducted a poll on our social media pages asking where people would like us to open, and Bexhill was the winner by miles.

“Over the next few months, we embarked on a fact-finding mission, to assess the viability of a Bexhill store and trying to find the perfect location.

“Early this year we secured a site on Devonshire Road on a 10-year lease and since then we have been quietly working away in the background preparing for the launch.

“There’s quite a bit of work to do to get the shop up to Maybugs standards and to make it as fabulous as possible. If all goes to plan, we look forward to welcoming everyone to our launch in late June.”

John said: “We are very much looking forward to bringing our unique take on gift retailing to Bexhill. Of course, customers should expect to find all the fabulous things we have become known for stocking at the other two stores, including brands such as Wrendale, Inis and JellyCat. However, there will be lots of new things exclusively stocked at the Bexhill branch too.

“Bexhill already has an array of fabulous independent retailers and big brands, and we hope to compliment the overall offering in the town, helping to draw in new shoppers and building relationships with the local community organisations too.”

Greg added: “Maybugs has grown faster than we ever expected. With the two stores in Hailsham and Eastbourne going from strength to strength, it made perfect sense to invest in the business and open a third before the summer season kicks in.

“Of course, retail continues to be tricky and shopping patterns now are very different to pre-pandemic times. However, our stores, combined with our brand-new website are enabling the business to grow both in-store and online.

“We believe a strong High Street presence combined with a fully functional website is the future for independent retailing.”

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