At a time when big retail chains across the country are going out of business, one small shop in the Highlands is bucking the trend.

Two years ago a little shop in the Ross-shire village of Shieldaig put up the shutters, apparently for the last time. It had been run by Nanny Grant since 1950, and before that by her father, Sandy Grant, who built it in 1918. Since he in turn had been carrying on a family tradition going back deep into the 19th century, it seemed like the end of an era when Nanny died at the age of 73.

Now, however, building on a strong nostalgia for the past, two enterprising women in Shieldaig have reopened the shop. Lynn Frost, 38, and Lisa O'Brien, 41, have named the new business “Nanny's”. As well as stocking local produce, including the famous Loch Torridon smoked salmon, they have included a takeaway service for coffee and home baking.

The produce may be new, but the tradition has strong links with the past. Shopkeeping in those days was a world away from the click-and-deliver of today's internet. Isolated villages such as Applecross had for generations been supplied weekly by boat from Shieldaig, weather permitting.

The Grants' shop was the cornerstone of that precarious existence, stocking everything from food to the Calor gas and coal that kept isolated crofts going. It was not until 1970 that Princess Margaret opened the new coast road and ended a centuries-long dependence on breaks in the weather.

The Grants had been a prominent Shieldaig family for more than two hundred years. But Nanny never married and was the last of the line. The day she turned the key in the lock for the last time, just a few months before her death, was a nostalgic occasion for villagers, who assumed that the corrugated iron building would become yet another holiday home.

It was then that Lynn and Lisa stepped in. “Everybody knew it as Nanny's shop when I was young, so keeping the name was an easy decision,” said Mrs Frost, a graduate and mother of two preschool-age children.

“Neither of us had any money or a burning desire to start up a business as such - it was just this shop that attracted us. It's just so ‘old Shieldaig' and it's good to get life back into this part of the village with so many holiday homes around.

“Nanny's shop meant a lot to everybody with a Shieldaig connection. I remember my granny would give me a list that I would leave with Nanny and somebody would collect the shopping later in the day. It was just a way of life.”

Although no business can run on sentiment, it could equally be said that sentiment has done this venture no harm. Local support has been exceptional, with the upmarket Loch Torridon Hotel even lending a £3,000 coffee machine while it is closed for the winter.

Ms O'Brien, who also has two young children and a master's degree in Fine Art, was attracted to the shop after settling in the village. She designed the shop's logo. “It's one of those buildings that transport you back in time and it was so sad to see it closed,” Ms O'Brien said. Her CV includes teaching English in Italy and working with refugees in Sheffield.

“I like the idea of a place where people can meet and chat. That's the side of it that interests me more than the profit and loss of running a shop.”

Current stock includes candles, soap, chocolates, jewellery, eco-friendly bags and knitwear, all made in the local community.

Income from certain items, like a CD featuring local artists, goes to community groups such as the Village Fund. “We never realised there was so much creative talent locally,” Mrs Frost said. “Applecross alone has a wealth of talent, just incredible. We're overwhelmed by the support we've had from all quarters. Even my Mum did knitting for us and Dad made bird-nesting boxes. The emphasis is on all things local.”

Future plans include selling locally-grown vegetables and enabling people to access the sea food for which Loch Torridon is famous. “People like to know where their produce has come from,” Ms O'Brien said.

“It can be difficult to source fresh vegetables here and we'd like to support people to make a living in the local community. That's largely what we're about as well.”

The two women are aware of the reputation that preceded them and are ready for the challenge. “We are absolutely amazed how well we've done in the few days we've been open,” Mrs Frost said. “The support that we've had is incredible.”

Founded and run on community service, the wee shop on the Shieldaig seafront has stood the test of time, while global trade teeters towards the abyss. The lesson is not lost on the people of Wester Ross.

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