Americana comes to Strand Quay

“The Shop on the Quay”, is the latest store to open at Strand Quay in Rye, but what does it sell?
We popped in to meet the owners, take a look around and find out the story.

“We’d been to the States on holiday and seen the gas stations that had remained untouched since the 50s, stayed in the mom and pop guest houses with the cool vintage décor and eaten in the themed American diners decorated with old Coke memorabilia and wished we could take a few pieces back to remind us of good times” says Matt, co-owner.
“The cases were never big enough to bring stuff back” adds Amanda, the other member of the duo, “so we started off buying a few Americana bits on Ebay, having them shipped over from the USA and displaying them in our home” she continued, “and before long we had amassed quite a collection”.
Matt takes up the story, “Friends would pop in and admire the pieces and often comment on how they’d like to buy bits from us, word got around and soon we had complete strangers knocking on the door asking if items were for sale” It was at this point that the couple hatched a plan to put the buying and selling on to more of a formal footing and they formed Aces Speed Shop.

It was decided to travel to the States, hire a van and go “picking”. Flights were booked, a container organised and the first night’s motel booked. In the end, circumstances dictated that Matt made that first trip on his own. “It was both exciting and terrifying in equal measure” Matt says, “I spent three weeks travelling almost 3000 miles on that first trip” he recalls, “I met some really interesting people, found some amazing pieces but most importantly developed contacts ready for future trips”.
So as you’ve probably gathered, The Shop on the Quay sells Americana, but not just stuff sourced from the States, the shop is an eclectic mix of retro, vintage, upcycled and locally manufactured pieces too, quirky lamps, artwork, Sussex Forge made steel and reclaimed timber furniture and automobilia. You can even buy an ice cold glass bottle of Coke from the genuine 50s Coca-Cola vending machine.
The couple have a passion for what they sell and the back stories for some of the items are both fascinating and entertaining, so when you are next in Rye and you find yourself down by the Quay side (next to the Heritage Centre) pop in to the home of Aces Speed Shop at The Shop on the Quay and say hello, you’ll be made most welcome!
You can follow The Shop on the Quay and Aces Speed Shop on Facebook and Instagram.

Photos: Aces Speed Shop