Craven Arms traders in running for top shop award

Berties, which is based in Craven Arms, is up for Vintage Shop of the Year, while 55 Mill Street in Ludlow is in the running for the title of Antiques Centre of the Year. The two shops are in the finals of the competition called the Homes & Antiques Magazine Awards 2013.

Now in its second year, the awards will be presented at a glitzy open-air summer bash at Battersea Park in London later this year.

They were set up to celebrate the 'most interesting businesses on the high street'.

Both businesses in south Shropshire were nominated by members of the public before impressing on a 'mystery shopper' visit from the magazine.

Nina Healy-Hutchinson, owner of 55 Mill Street, said: "We are really excited, we knew absolutely nothing about it until we received a letter saying we had made the shortlist.

"We are going up against some really big-hitters in London. It's great that two shops in south Shropshire have made the list and hopefully we can both win."

The nomination for the Ludlow shop says: "55 Mill Street comprises a dozen experienced dealers, housed in an elegant, three-storey Georgian building near Ludlow Castle. They offer carefully sourced and unusual decorative antiques, vintage clothing and textiles, brocante and kitchenalia.

The citation for Berties says: "Berties stocks glamorous period fashions from the 1930s to the 1960s. To complete the look, there's an array of accessories – from canes to vintage sunglasses – and, if you want to create your own pieces, an extensive haberdashery."

The public are now being asked to vote for their favourites.

Details and voting forms are available at www.homesandantiques.com and voting closes on February 28.