Globetrotting Vivienne Bardoulet returns to her roots in Jedburgh with designs on success

Vivienne has travelled around the globe during her career, including spells in Paris, Dubai, London and west Yorkshire.

But the draw of home has finally led her to leave hospitality behind and open her new business, Vee Bee’s at 4 Canongate, a property which has been owned by her family for four generations.

Throughout her career Vivienne has managed to balance her work with a passion for interior designs.

Now the balance has shifted to her ongoing love of antiques and the new shop is specialising in everything from soft furnishings, cushions, throws to furniture, glassware, plates, pictures and ornaments.

Vivienne has run a number of restaurants and hotels, while also dealing in antique furniture, including the Horseshoe Inn at Eddlestone and the Cringletie House Hotel in Peebles.

She is now happy to put all her eggs in one basket – and has received a warm and enthusiastic welcome from townsfolk.

She said: "Interiors has always been a passion but I did it more in hotels. I’ve basically stopped hospitality after 30 years of running restaurants and hotels. The property has been in my family for four generations. My great-grandfather and my grandmother and grandfather had it as an ironmongers and when they retired they rented it out for many years as various things, it was a greetings card shop and latterly an ironmongers. It needed a lot of work and tender loving care. It’s a project through which I can utilise what I have done for the last 30 years.

"The feedback so far has been really, really positive. People have said lovely things, from externally, and how it has helped the Market Square, and with lots of lovely comments also about the window display.

"The previous tenant moved out in July and the property had been on the market for a couple of years. My mother was going to sell it, but nothing happened, so when I came back to the Borders I thought we’d kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.”

The outlet will be open on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday by appointment only and to the general public on Thursday through to Sunday, 10am to 4pm