One year after opening on George Street, a small creative hub is quietly reshaping how people in Altrincham keep and tell their stories. Share Your Story, run by Simon Hepburn, has grown from a shopfront idea into a multi-use space offering help with everything from converting old VHS tapes to recording podcasts and producing family portraiture.
From a front-room idea to a soundproofed studio
Simon, 53, told NEXO RADAR the past twelve months have brought “a steady uptick” in demand. As the business has become busier the unit has been adapted. A new partition at the rear now forms a fully soundproofed and lightproofed studio, separate from the shop floor and intended for work that needs controlled conditions.
The studio is already handling a varied workload: podcasts, corporate video, headshots, family portraits and other one-off commissions. Among the more unusual jobs was a recorded eulogy that was sent to a funeral service in Texas, an example of the cross-border, personal use of the facilities.
What residents come for
Share Your Story’s offer is built around a simple premise: people have material they want to save or present but lack the time, skills or equipment. Customers arrive with a broad range of needs—digital tidy-ups of thousands of phone photos, repair and conversion of old formats, or help creating a tangible album.
“Everyone has something they want to share,”
Simon says. The response from people has shaped the business: solutions are practical and hands-on, whether that is converting tapes to digital files or assembling a printed book of memories.
- Conversion and preservation of old media (VHS tapes, digitising photos)
- Recording and production (podcasts, corporate video, eulogies)
- Photography services (headshots, family portraits)
- Memory and keepsake products (photo books, journals)
Curated stock, not discount race
Part of Share Your Story’s appeal is the equipment and product selection. The shop stocks what Simon describes as “carefully curated” brands — Røde microphones, Canon, Kodak, Fujifilm and Manfrotto — and has deliberately avoided competing on price alone. He points out that people often come in after buying low-cost kit online that did not last.
That approach positions the hub between specialist city-centre studios and the anonymous online marketplace. “We’re right in the middle of Altrincham,” Simon says, noting the benefit for customers who do not want to travel to Manchester’s Northern Quarter or industrial areas for similar services.
Local impact and practical details
Share Your Story has become a visible addition to George Street, offering local people a resource for preserving family history and supporting small organisations and businesses with media production. It also represents a small-business model rooted in service and skills rather than rapid turnover.
| Service type | Examples |
|---|---|
| Media conversion | VHS to digital, photo scanning |
| Recording & production | Podcasts, corporate video, recorded eulogies |
| Photography | Headshots, family portraits |
| Products | Memory books, journals |
As the hub approaches its second year, its evolution — from shop-front experiments to a dedicated studio space — shows how small, specialist services can find a firm foothold in town centres. For Altrincham residents with boxes of old tapes, an unmade wedding album or thousands of photos on a phone, the message is practical and straightforward: help is available on their high street.
For more information, residents can visit the Share Your Story unit on George Street to discuss projects and book studio time.
