We checked 17 Winchester area shops, from The Hambledon to P&G Wells, for opening hours, addresses and what they sell. Updated November 2026.

Winchester and its nearby villages have 17 mostly independent shops worth a Christmas shopping trip in 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with opening hours, addresses and what each one sells. The Hambledon, P&G Wells, Warren & Son and The Consortium are the names most people land on. We checked each entry on 5 November 2026 against the shop’s own site, and say where we could not.

We have not shopped at any of these for this guide, and nothing here is a review. Each entry says what the shop says it sells, in its own words where we can quote them. Most of the hours below are regular hours, not Christmas ones, and only P&G Wells had published festive times when we checked. Shops often change their hours close to Christmas, so check before a special trip.

Dates for the Christmas shopping diary

Thursday 19 November: lights switch-on. The Winchester Christmas lights switch-on runs from 4.20pm to 7.30pm in The Broadway, according to Winchester BID.

Friday 20 November to Tuesday 22 December: Cathedral Christmas Market. The market in the Cathedral Close is free, with no booking. The cathedral gives its hours as 10am to 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays and 10am to 6pm from Sunday to Thursday. Winchester BID’s #IndieWinch chalet is there for the whole run, with a different independent on most days. Its published rota includes Mythic Tabletop Games on 24 and 25 November, Mint Tea Boutique on 26 and 27 November, P&G Wells on 4 and 5 December, Jeremy France Jewellers on 7 December, Ellie and Bea on 10 and 11 December, Chococo on 14 and 15 December and Kingsgate Wine & Provisions on 22 December. The BID says these can change at late notice.

Thursday 26 November: late opening in Kingsgate Village. Winchester BID’s diary lists the Kingsgate Village lights switch-on and late opening from 5.30pm to 8pm. It is the only late opening in that diary, and we found no city-wide late night date. Bishop’s Waltham’s Christmas Fayre also has late-night shopping on its High Street that evening, according to Visit Winchester.

Makers’ markets. Visit Winchester’s list of smaller markets, last updated on 22 October, includes these:

  • The Makers’ Sale at The Grange Winery, near Alresford, Wednesday 25 and Thursday 26 November
  • The Winchester Flea: Christmas Edition at Abbey Mill, Sunday 29 November, 10am to 4pm
  • The Nutshell Christmas Makers Market, Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December
  • Wickham Christmas Fair at Wickham Community Centre, Sunday 6 December
  • Winchester Makers Market: Festive Edition at The Arc, Saturday 12 December

Getting there. No park and ride buses run on Sundays or public holidays, according to the city council’s FAQs. Our Winchester parking guide has the car parks and charges.

The Square and Market Street

1. The Hambledon, The Square

The Hambledon says it was founded in 1999 and trades from a four-storey building overlooking the cathedral, and calls itself “a kind of department store but just selling the good stuff”. Menswear is in the basement, homeware on the ground floor with beauty and grooming on a mezzanine, and children’s things and stationery in the Tudor rooms.

Its website has a Christmas section with decorations, cards and wrap, advent calendars and stocking fillers. The shop warns that much of the building is on different levels and reached by stairs.

Open Mon to Sat 10am to 5.30pm; Sun 11am to 4pm
Call 01962 890055
Address 10 The Square, SO23 9ES
Website thehambledon.com
Good for homeware, menswear, beauty, children's gifts, stationery, Christmas decorations

2. Sass & Edge, Market Street

Sass & Edge describes itself as an independent womenswear boutique in the heart of Winchester. Its founders, Sally and Rachel, say they opened the doors in 2017 as a joint venture.

Visit Winchester says the pair are locals who saw a gap for shopping that was “a little less serious and a lot more fun”.

Open Mon to Sat 9.30am to 5.30pm; Sun 10.30am to 4.30pm
Call 01962 867911
Address Unit 1, 4-8 Market Street, SO23 9EP
Website sassandedge.com
Good for womenswear

High Street

3. Warren & Son, High Street

Warren & Son was founded as a printers in Parchment Street in 1835, according to its own history, and had moved to 85 High Street by 1859. The building once housed the local court, and the shop says a trace of the passage to the old city prison survives in the cellar.

Today it sells cards, Jellycat soft toys, games and puzzles, trading card games, stationery and home and garden gifts, and describes its stock as an ever-changing range of unusual gifts and wrapping paper.

Open Mon to Sat 9am to 5.30pm; Sun 10.30am to 4.30pm
Call 01962 865966
Address 85 High Street, SO23 9AE
Website warrenandson.com
Good for cards, Jellycat, games and puzzles, stationery, wrapping paper

4. Jeremy France Jewellers, The Pentice

Jeremy France describes itself as a family-run jewellery shop with more than 30 years in the trade. It sits in The Pentice, the covered stretch of the High Street.

Visit Winchester says it sells jewellery with natural and laboratory-grown diamonds and gemstones, makes bespoke designs and British-made engagement rings, and has designers and a workshop on site for repairs and remodelling.

Open Mon to Fri 9.30am to 5pm; Sat 9.30am to 5.30pm; Sun 10.30am to 4.30pm
Call 01962 869110
Address 32 The Pentice, High Street, SO23 9BL
Website jeremyfrancejewellers.co.uk
Good for jewellery, bespoke design, repairs

5. Chococo, High Street

Chococo is a small chain rather than a Winchester-only independent, with what it calls chocolate houses in Swanage, Winchester, Exeter, Horsham, West Dulwich and Westfield Stratford City. Visit Winchester’s listing describes “multi award-winning chocolates made in Dorset”.

Its website sells boxed chocolates, slabs, hampers, letterbox gifts and Christmas boxes. The hours and phone number below come from that listing, because we could not find a page for the Winchester shop on Chococo’s own site.

Open Mon to Fri 9am to 5pm; Sat 9am to 5.30pm; Sun 10am to 5pm
Call 01962 658181
Address 152 High Street, SO23 9AY
Website chococo.co.uk
Good for boxed chocolates, hampers, Christmas boxes

St Thomas Street, Parchment Street and Jewry Street

6. Mint Tea Boutique, St Thomas Street

Mint Tea Boutique calls itself an independent clothing, homeware and gift shop, run by co-founders Bex and Lou, with a second shop in Westbourne. Its website sorts gifts by price, from under £10 to under £50.

Public map data still shows a Southgate Street address, but the shop’s own site gives St Thomas Street. We could not find published opening hours, so ring first.

Call 01962 865389
Address 4 St Thomas Street, SO23 9HE
Website mint-teaboutique.com
Good for clothing, jewellery, homeware, gifts

7. Ellie and Bea, Parchment Street

Ellie and Bea describes itself as a Hampshire lifestyle boutique selling women’s fashion, accessories and jewellery. It has a sister shop, Seagrass Bay, at 6 St Thomas Street, which Visit Winchester lists as a lingerie and swimwear boutique offering fittings.

We could not find published opening hours for either shop, so ring first.

Call 01962 860008
Address 80 Parchment Street, SO23 8AT
Website ellieandbea.co.uk
Good for women's fashion, accessories, jewellery

8. aura jewellery, Parchment Street

Visit Winchester describes aura as a creative independent jeweller with a curated collection of silver and gold, plus its own pieces made in an on-site workshop. It also says the shop takes commissions.

We could not find a website or published hours, so these details come from that listing, and it is worth ringing first.

Call 01962 851898
Address 5 Parchment Street, SO23 8AT
Good for silver and gold jewellery, handmade pieces, commissions

9. The Consortium, Jewry Street

Visit Winchester describes The Consortium as five floors of vintage furniture, homewares, fashion and gifts. Its own website has a Christmas section, with a small bauble listed at £3.50 when we checked, alongside fashion, home and lifestyle and furniture.

There is a sister shop in Romsey. It is also an Annie Sloan paint stockist, and that company’s listing gives different hours, so we have used the shop’s own.

Open Mon to Fri 9.30am to 5pm; Sat 9.30am to 5.30pm; Sun 10.30am to 4.30pm
Call 01962 867734
Address 39 Jewry Street, SO23 8RY
Website theconsortiumonline.co.uk
Good for vintage, homewares, fashion, baubles, gifts

10. The Winchester Book Shop, St George’s Street

Visit Winchester says this shop was set up in 1991 by four local book dealers and has three floors of antiquarian, second-hand, vintage and nearly new books, along with prints and ephemera. It is down a small passageway off St George’s Street, near the Parchment Street junction.

We could not find a website or published hours, so ring first.

Call 01962 855630
Address 10a St George's Street, SO23 8BG
Good for second-hand books, antiquarian books, prints

Kingsgate Village and College Street

Winchester BID lists the Kingsgate Village late opening on Thursday 26 November, from 5.30pm to 8pm. We have not seen a list of which shops are taking part, so check with any one you want to visit.

11. P&G Wells, College Street

P&G Wells has traded under that name since 1891 and has been at 11 College Street since 1789, according to Visit Winchester, which traces the business back to a 1729 invoice to Winchester College. It also says Jane Austen wrote about books bought here in 1798.

The shop takes orders online, by email and by phone. It is the one shop in this guide that had published Christmas hours when we checked: 9am to 4pm on Christmas Eve, and closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

Open Mon to Sat 9am to 5.30pm; Sun and bank holidays 11am to 5pm; Christmas Eve 9am to 4pm
Call 01962 852016
Address 11 College Street, SO23 9LZ
Website pgwells.co.uk
Good for new books, local interest, children's books, book orders

12. Cornflowers, College Street

Visit Winchester describes Cornflowers as a family-run gift shop with hand-selected products, including scarves, handbags, ceramics, greeting cards, soft toys and toiletries. It says the shop also sells Winchester College gifts, such as ties, cufflinks and engraved wine glasses.

We could not find a website or published hours, so ring first.

Call 01962 621234
Address 17 College Street, SO23 9LX
Good for gifts, soft toys, ceramics, Winchester College gifts

13. Kingsgate Books & Prints, Kingsgate Arch

Established in 1991, this small shop sits in what it calls the ancient Kingsgate Arch and specialises in antique prints, maps and engravings, watercolours, books and bespoke picture framing. The hours below are the ones its website listed for this week.

They are short and may change from week to week, so look again before you go.

Open week of 5 November: Tue and Sat 12pm to 5pm; Sun 1pm to 4pm; closed Wed to Fri
Call 01962 864710
Address Kingsgate Arch, SO23 9PD
Website kingsgatebooksandprints.co.uk
Good for antique maps, prints, watercolours, picture framing

14. Kingsgate Wines & Provisions, Kingsgate Street

Established in 1996, this shop calls itself Winchester’s only independent wine shop and provisions store, and “part neighbourhood wine shop, part deli, part modern corner shop”, according to its Visit Winchester listing. That listing names wines from Burgundy and Bordeaux, English and natural wines, sake and local beers, along with smoked trout, Iberico ham and artisan cheeses.

Open Mon to Sat 9am to 7pm; Sun 10am to 4pm
Call 01962 854670
Address 2-4 Kingsgate Street, SO23 9PD
Website kingsgateprovisions.co.uk
Good for wine, deli gifts, local beers, cheese

Outside the city centre

15. Long Barn, Alresford

Long Barn is a lifestyle store, cafe and plant nursery surrounded by lavender fields on the road between New Alresford and Bishops Sutton. Visit Winchester says it sells homeware, fashion, plants and garden products.

The cafe closes earlier than the shop and does not take bookings.

Open Mon to Sat 9am to 5pm; Sun and bank holidays 10am to 4pm
Food cafe Mon to Sat 9am to 4pm; Sun and bank holidays 10am to 3.30pm
Booking cafe does not take bookings
Call 01962 738684
Address The Old Sheep Fair, Bishops Sutton Road, Alresford, SO24 9EJ
Website longbarn.co.uk
Good for homeware, fashion, plants, cafe

16. The Chesapeake Mill, Wickham

Visit Winchester describes the Chesapeake Mill as a home for antique and traditional vintage lifestyle accessories, with specialist traders sourcing hard-to-find products. Its website lists no Monday hours.

The Wickham Christmas Fair is in the village on Sunday 6 December, at the community centre.

Open Tue to Sat 10am to 5pm; Sun and bank holidays 11am to 4pm
Call 01329 834078
Address Bridge Street, Wickham, PO17 5JH
Website thechesapeakemill.com
Good for antiques, vintage, specialist traders

17. Bay Tree Gifts, Wickham

Visit Winchester describes Bay Tree Gifts as an independent gift shop selling silver and gemstone jewellery, greeting cards, lifestyle products and homeware. We could not find a website or published hours, so these details come from that listing, and it is worth ringing first.

Call 01329 835282
Address Bay Tree Walk, Wickham, PO17 5JQ
Good for jewellery, cards, homeware, gifts

Shops we could not confirm

We left these out because the records disagree or we could not read them. That does not mean any of them has closed, and we would welcome a line from each.

  • Tillius, listed on the High Street by Visit Winchester. Its own website showed only a password page on 5 November.
  • Fig & Fox, which Visit Winchester calls one of the city’s newest shops. Fig & Fox’s own store locator lists only Romsey and Salisbury.
  • Projects, which Visit Winchester lists as a shop and cafe stocked by local traders. We could not find its own site to confirm its address and hours. Its Rail Sale is listed for “Thursday 28 November”, but 28 November 2026 is a Saturday.
  • Mythic Tabletop Games, on the BID’s chalet rota for 24 and 25 November. Its own website still says “Launching Soon”, so we could not confirm its address or hours from the shop.
  • Donna Laine Fine Jewellery on Parchment Street, on the BID’s chalet rota for 22 and 23 November and 16 and 17 December. We could not confirm its address or hours.

How we chose

We started from Visit Winchester’s Christmas shopping and gift shop guides, its street-by-street lists of independents and Winchester BID’s chalet rota, then added shops from public map data. We kept the shops that sell things people give as presents and whose own site or Visit Winchester listing we could read on 5 November 2026, and looked for closure notices. That check removed The Black Bottle in Bridge Street, whose website now says it has closed. Chococo is the one chain here, and we say so in its entry.

Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@winchesterpost.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@winchesterpost.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.

For more locally, see things to do in Winchester, what’s on in Winchester this month, Christmas dinner in Winchester, the Father Christmas guide, ice rinks near Winchester and the Winchester business directory.

Frequently asked questions

When is late night shopping in Winchester in 2026?

The one late opening in Winchester BID’s 2026 diary is Kingsgate Village on Thursday 26 November, from 5.30pm to 8pm, alongside its own lights switch-on. Bishop’s Waltham’s Christmas Fayre has late-night shopping the same evening. We found no city-wide late night date when we checked on 5 November. The Cathedral Christmas Market stays open until 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

Where can I find independent gift shops in Winchester?

The Hambledon at 10 The Square, Warren & Son at 85 High Street, The Consortium at 39 Jewry Street, Mint Tea Boutique at 4 St Thomas Street and Cornflowers at 17 College Street all sell gifts. Winchester BID also runs an independents’ chalet at the Cathedral Christmas Market, with different local businesses trading from 20 November to 22 December.

Are Winchester shops open on Sundays before Christmas?

Several publish regular Sunday hours, including The Hambledon (11am to 4pm), P&G Wells (11am to 5pm), Warren & Son (10.30am to 4.30pm), The Consortium (10.30am to 4.30pm) and Chococo (10am to 5pm). No park and ride buses run on Sundays, according to the city council. Hours often change close to Christmas, so check before a special trip.