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Every year, Theo Paphitis's Small Business Sunday (#SBS) shines a spotlight on independent UK businesses doing things differently. And every year, a handful of those winners get the chance to take their products from social media to the show floor at the retail industry’s no.1 wholesale, home, gift and fashion trade event, Spring Fair.
This year's competition drew a record number of entrants. We received detailed applications covering everything from product range and pricing to existing stockists and trade show experience, and a judging panel reviewed each one against criteria including originality, retail readiness, growth potential and the strength of the founder's story.
54 businesses made the final shortlist, spanning gift, fashion, home, food and drink, pet, and wellbeing categories, offering a useful insight on the gift industry and wider retail trends from 2026 and heading into 2027
What gift industry trends did this year's #SBS entries reveal?
This year's entries pointed to three major shifts shaping independent business right now, all useful signals for anyone tracking UK gift market trends ahead of the next buying season.
1. Circular and upcycled design
Entrants are turning waste into wearable and giftable products: discarded coffee pods into jewellery, vintage silverware into keepsakes, mudlarked Victorian pottery into pendants, charity shop fabric into clothing, and pre-loved saris into homewares. It reflects wider consumer behaviour too. Research from OC&C Strategy Consultants reported by The Retail Bulletin puts the UK's secondhand sector at more than £7 billion, with around a quarter of fashion transactions now involving resale. For retailers building out fashion ranges, this is worth reading alongside our fashion trade show coverage.
2. Well-being-led product design
Mindful tea, talking plushies for children's anxiety, self-care soaps, and curl-specific haircare all featured strongly this year, mirroring a UK wellness economy that the Global Wellness Institute valued at $224 billion in 2022, one of the fastest-growing wellness markets in the world.
3. Personalised, story-led pet and family gifting
From British-made dog clothing to baby wear with exclusive prints, founders are leaning into the emotional pull of pet ownership, a category UK shoppers now spend around £8 billion a year on, according to recent pet industry data.
Who's on the 2027 #SBS x Spring Fair shortlist?
Gift & Novelty:
Boho Bloom, EllaJo Studio, Lewis Engraving, It's Our Planet Too, Mapper Cards, Bare Cards, Bird Stamp Designs, Olivia Goddard Designs, Olive Tree Makes, Art By Kerrie, Heart E Designs, Brilliantly Brave, Sweet Williams, Tiffany Budd Fine Art, SOZO Silver, Sarah Westwood Illustrator, Share A Little Frankie, and Magic By Post.
Fashion & Accessories:
Love Lissie, The Aylo Edit, Curds and Whey, Georgie Belle's Boutique, By Kala X, Moon & Bear, Aria & Avery, Little Scandi Baby, Kathy Kyle, Eye Candy, Sian Mellor, Nudie Jewellery, Nestle & Bloom Baby Co, Looped Studio Crochet, and Coffee Pod Creations. 
Home, Interiors & Lifestyle:
Studio Pri Art, Candle Wise, The Silicone Straw Company, Ooshky, Go Your Own Way, Pri Pri, and Peach Threads.
Food & Drink:
Cocoa & Paper, Tired Mums Coffee, Saffire Chocolates, Wrexham Cider, and IVA Plants.
Pet:
Dug Pog, Hugo and Ted, JLHPRINT, and Dog Avenue.
Wellbeing & Self-Care:
Curly Girl Method Club, The Calmness Crew, Mel's Little Luxuries, Cuppa Kindness, and SNOAP.
The SBS winners will be announced on 10th July.
How can retailers source products for a gift shop from brands like these?
For independent retailers, shortlists like this one are effectively a shortcut for how to source products for a gift shop without wading through hundreds of unvetted suppliers. Every business here has already been through a judging process that checks for retail readiness, so it's a lower-risk starting point than cold outreach. The same logic applies across categories: buyers hunting for wholesale gift suppliers uk wide, or looking at garden centre buying trends for the year ahead, can use competitions and showcase villages as a filter for which new brands are worth a first order. Our garden and outdoor retail content covers a similar seasonal lens for that sector.
Ready to meet the shortlist in person?
The #SBS Village pops up at Spring Fair every year, and is one of several reasons why buyers come to the event. Alongside this, we have the wider line-up of exhibitions, talks and sourcing opportunities on the show floor, incredible content stages led by industry leaders, and so much more. If you're a retailer, wholesaler or buyer looking to discover the next wave of independent brands before they scale, you’re in luck, register your interest for free today and meet our incredible SBS x Spring Fair winners in person.
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