What is the Virtual High Street?

Virtual refers to the online platform (a website, social media etc) that facilitates purchases from any type of business. The Virtual High Street comprises online resellers, cottage industries, local creatives and the regular ‘bricks and mortar’ shops that are already on Haslemere High Street and Weyhill to create a wonderful hub of reference for anyone looking to shop while still remaining local. 

The phrase Virtual High Street was born out of the second lockdown and a desire to give local small businesses an opportunity to continue trading in a compliant way. We are facilitating the connection between customers and businesses which may not otherwise be reached, with the seller maintaining the relationship with their customer. The sellers get to show their brands, products and services directly, whether it’s through their own website, physical shop, Facebook etc. 

Last year, those of us who ran out of Christmas shopping time resorted to Amazon & other big online retailers which had a big impact on our local businesses; this year we had the option to shop local. Even if we can’t get to the local shops within their opening hours, we can connect through Facebook’s Virtual High Street – Haslemere  and through this new website. This boosts business in our local shops and keeps money in our local economy which is vital if we want our high street to survive. 

We are also lucky to have many small businesses who are without shop fronts, providing a rich and diverse offering: services and items which may be too niche to warrant a full shopfront, but with items people really want. You only have to look at the Virtual High Street Haslemere Facebook page to see how many talented local creatives there are, offering something very different from the big corporates online.  

So, settle down with a warm drink and enjoy browsing through everything Haslemere and the surrounding villages has to offer.  We’re sure you will have a fantastic shopping experience.