Nottingham’s Lucy & Yak says neurodivergent shopping scheme ‘a great success’

Shopping hours for neurodivergent people at an eco-friendly clothing shop in Nottingham are “a great success”, staff have said.

Lucy & Yak, an independent fashion brand opened its latest fluorescent pink shop on Poultry Arcade in February and has recently launched neurodivergent-friendly shopping days with a clothing collection catered to experiences of neurodiversity.

On the 17th of each month, the store is adjusted to create a welcoming shopping atmosphere for customers, including reduced noise and lighting, lo-fi music and fidget toys to use as you shop.

Ziggy Hayter, a retail assistant at Lucy & Yak’s Nottingham store, said the neurodivergent shopping hours have had “a really warm reception”.

They added: “I think it’s an opportunity people don’t get that often. It’s something that’s not really used by other brands, especially chains.

“It’s not something you normally see on the high street and I think people that wouldn’t normally feel comfortable coming in now have the time to come in and just take as long as they need.”

Events are also available in-store, such as making fidget keyrings and sensory pillows, with stickers available to those indicating they would prefer a peaceful shopping experience.

Neurodivergent is an umbrella term for several different conditions, including autism and ADHD.

The clothing collection has been created by neurodivergent artist Sarah Caulfield, Lucy and Yak’s in-house artist and “upcycler”.

She invited neurodivergent people to help create the collection with feedback on the sensory and stimulatory aspects of the fabrics, shapes, colours and fits.

Lucy Greenwood, co-founder of Lucy & Yak, said: “Our previous campaign platformed the importance of sensory needs in clothing and resulted in feedback from our community that they welcomed the wider awareness around neurodiversity and felt ‘seen’.”

Ziggy added: “It’s not a lot to implement, but it means a lot to people.”