Exhibitor Press Releases

Maybugs gives birth to Maybugs Designs

Top Drawer SS26… Our First Ever Trade Show

Our Story

Founded in 2018 by couple Greg Rose and John Dale, Maybugs is a family run, independent gift and homewares store based in Sussex. They decided to open their first store in Hailsham, selling ‘Beautiful Things for Fabulous People.’ Greg, with his years of retail buying experience and John with his customer service background was the perfect fit.

Three further stores followed in Eastbourne in 2021, Bexhill-On-Sea in 2022 and Tunbridge Wells in 2024. Each of the Maybugs stores feature a plethora of unique gifts, including many UK made items combined with some of the biggest gift and homewares brands in the UK. This coupled with locally sourced and produced products made by ‘a lady in her garden shed at the end of the road.’ Their range of products change continuously, you’ll always find something new and unique, or that special gift you’ve been searching far and wide.

Now in their seventh year, Maybugs continues to go from strength to strength and has been recognised by business and retail awards at the highest levels. And in 2025 Maybugs Designs has now been born.

Maybugs Designs

To mark the full launch of Maybugs Designs the couple, who are putting into practice what they’ve learned running four greeting card and gift stores in Bexhill, Eastbourne, Hailsham and Tunbridge Wells since 2018 are delighted to be at Top Drawer SS26.

“We launched our very own greeting cards earlier this year in our own stores, and this summer we then soft-launched them out to other selected retailers in the south east. We’ve had lots of orders and a very good response to our cheeky humour and simple yet contemporary style.”

“We’ve worked hard over the past 12 months to develop the range, with the USP that they’ve all been tried and tested in our stores, and if they didn’t sell then we haven’t brought them to the wider market. It’s been hard work, but who wants a quiet life anyway!”

Maybugs was a finalist in The Retas retailer awards in 2022 and 2025, and won Small Business Britain’s Small Awards 2023 High Street Hero trophy for being active members of their communities and working to drive footfall both to their own and neighbouring businesses.

Maybugs have also won 3 Greats Gift retailer awards in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

Greg and John have used their retail knowledge to offer their cards in multiples of six, and cellowrapped with a naked option, and a recommended retail price of £2.99.