Babalu

Babalu has traded from Forres High Street since 2007, when Laura Hanson opened the shop under the strapline 'daring to be different'. The stock runs to jewellery, clothing, incense, gemstones, toys and books, sourced from artisans working both locally and abroad, with an emphasis on fair trade suppliers and fair prices paid to makers. Hanson has kept the shop's mix deliberately eclectic, filling shelves with items described by regulars as alternative and unusual rather than mainstream giftware. The shop is a fixture of the town's independent retail scene, having outlasted several changes on the high street around it. Babalu opens Monday to Friday from 10.30am to 5pm, with an early lunch closure, and Saturday from 10.30am to 5pm; it is closed on Sundays.