All hands on decks as record and plant shop puts down new roots

It's the houseplant and DJ shop with the genius name that was threatened with closure recently. But Plant and Deck has found a new base - and is now open upstairs at Doghouse Bar & Bagel Shop in Kirkgate, Leeds city centre. YEP reporter Dennis Morton went along to find out how the move has gone from owner Phil Warner

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Your shop has the best name - Plant and Deck. How on earth did you come to be selling houseplants alongside vinyl records?

"The concept was born in 2022 from my twin passions," said founder Phil Warner. "I've always wanted to work in a record shop, but you don't really make much money selling records, so you need something else to kind of give it a reason to exist.

"And I thought, Oh, you know, I love house plants as well. So house plants and records, and it could be called Plant and Deck, that would just be... silly, wouldn't it?"

So what began as a tongue-in-cheek idea quickly became a fixture in the city's creative scene?

"Absolutely! Plant and Deck first took root inside Imaginarium, a multipurpose venue that championed underground music, art and local culture.

"For three years we were a haven for crate-diggers and plant enthusiasts alike."