A West Kilbride couple have fulfilled a lifelong dream after opening their own wedding shop in the village.

David Long and Kerry Grace have joined forces to bring their two business together at the new premises in Ritchie Street.

David runs his own award-winning wedding photography business whilst Kerry owns The Village Invitations Company, which has also picked up a string of award gongs over the years.

The talented snapper admits the move is a dream come true for the pair, who fell in love with the space straight away.

David said: “For a number of years now, Kerry and I have talked about having our own premises in the village.

“It has always been a dream of ours and although we had looked at places occasionally they never felt right.

“We saw that the previous owners of this building Weft Blown were moving premises and knew we had to be on the lookout for the lease becoming available.

“It did so we viewed it the next morning, and we knew straight away that the space and location was perfect for us.”

The pair will be able to use the extra space to expand their businesses, which David reveals is needed as weddings boom following the pandemic.

He explained: “Kerry is able to craft far more than wedding stationery but felt frustrated as she cannot do more than she already does from home.

“She dreams of changing careers and being able to run a successful ‘wee wedding shop’ where she can craft all day and create beautiful flowers, stationery and personalised gifts.

“I will utilise the space for meetings mainly and I’m currently thinking of setting up a space for studio work.”

The new shop will join a host of other wedding related businesses on the streets of West Kilbride, with the award winning Opus Couture right next door.

David added: “Our village is filled with talented individuals who have no doubt stemmed from a long heritage of crafters.

“We live in the most beautiful place with stunning wedding venues on our doorstep which I’m sure naturally drives crafters to this area of business.

“We cannot wait to get to know the neighbouring businesses better and become part of an already established community.”