The owners of a British vintage shop say the taxidermied animals they sell are extremely popular with druids and witches.
The Raven and Broomstick in Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, has a wide array of strange items, including a selection of now-dead taxidermied animals.
The owners, Lilly Stregheria and her partner Wookie, told BedfordshireLive that self-described witches and wizards are drawn to their shop, people with all kinds of spiritual beliefs are drawn to the premises.
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“We have so many returning customers, apart from one or two passers by who nip in out of curiosity, the rest of the people that come here do so several times. Our customers become our friends and there is a community within the different circles”, Lilly said.
(Image: Lilly Stregheria)
“We have people coming from London every couple of months to purge our shop, a lot of traders who have their own shops in London come to our shop because prices are cheaper than what they can find in London,” she added.
Lilly, who opened The Raven and Broomstick five years ago, said that her love of collecting oddities started 30 years ago when she began collecting items from markets and car boot sales.
“I started to collect items related to the history of different religions, cultures and paths, not just witchcraft and the occult but anything that is Eastern, African, Egyptian. I had a big interest in all the different cultures all over the world”, she added.
(Image: Lilly Stregheria)
Despite the growth of their business, Lilly and Wookie say that there is still a stigma surrounding occult and spiritual practices.
There is a stigma against all types of beliefs and faiths. A lot of people watched horror films growing up, especially around the 70s and 80s”.
“It doesn’t matter what you do, it is going to bother somebody and that is just the way it works sometimes”, she added.
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