New menswear shop Daliz opens in Winchester Street, Salisbury

Darren and Liz Brookes opened DALIZ in March after noticing a growing lack of quality menswear shops in Salisbury.

The frustration of having to travel to London or Southampton to find a decent shop, combined with almost 10 years of longing for their own business, motivated the couple to build something they could call theirs.

The Salisbury couple decided to "take the plunge" after seeing a 'for sale' sign at 34 Winchester Street while walking their dog Poppy last December. 

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They initially planned to create their own fashion brand and sell clothing out of a mobile stall at Salisbury market but decided to downsize to a city centre home so they could open DALIZ.

Liz said: "We have been talking about it for years and years but there’s never a right time. We've had so much support from everyone, it has just been brilliant.

"We wanted to get away from the cheapy-cheapy stuff but didn’t think the economy could sustain really high end costs. It’s something accessible for all."

Liz and Darren Brooke opened DALIZ on March 30. (Image: Newsquest)

Opening times are limited to Friday and Saturday since the couple still work full time - Darren, 50, is a former paramedic who trains the fire service while Liz, 55, is a senior programme manager.

The main clothing label sold at DALIZ is Solid, a Danish designer brand offering affordable menswear with a manufacture quality similar to Marks and Spencer according to Liz.

DALIZ is the only European retailer selling Salty Dagger jewellery which is handmade by a surfer brand based in Australia.

It also stocks Gaston Luga backpacks and will soon be selling Walk In Pitas shoes.

“The shop itself is pretty much who we are. We want to bring people in, particularly men, into a place where they will feel comfortable,” said Darren.

DALIZ sells quality menswear sourced from independent suppliers. (Image: Newsquest)

Having a neurodiverse 11-year-old son themselves, the couple are aware of the challenges some people face when shopping.

To help with this, they’re willing to open DALIZ on an out-of-hours appointment basis to give people a chance to comfortably browse upon request.

The pair are running the shop while working full-time. Darren is a paramedic and Liz is a senior programme manager.

Inside DALIZ. (Image: Newsquest)

Once the business is fully up and running, Darren and Liz want to sell their own DALIZ neurodiverse-friendly clothing with removable tags and extra comforts.

DALIZ currently only offers in-store shopping from 2 to 6pm on Friday and 10am to 6pm on Saturday but click and collect will soon be available, with local delivery in the pipeline.

For more information visit dalizandson.com.