We’ve been rounding up the best Christmas gifts from Manchester makers, independents and iconic establishments. This guide is for things that you can sort last minute, whether you’re running around town on Christmas eve, or just need to secure an ‘actually quite thoughtful’ gift card. No stress and certainly no petrol stations necessary, here’s the best of what the city has to offer…
Looking for something else? Read our other gift guides.
Manchester’s best ‘money no object’ Christmas gifts
Manchester’s best food and drink Christmas gifts
Manchester’s best stylish Christmas gifts
Manchester’s best budget Christmas gifts
Pottery Experience Vouchers, Seven Limes Pottery, various prices
The team at Seven Limes Pottery have been teaching complete beginners how to throw clay for over 25 years, which means there isn’t a safer pair of hands. They offer all sorts of classes which you can purchase gift vouchers for, from making a mug to a twelve week pottery wheel throwing course, just pick an amount, and your recipient can book what they fancy. You might just unlock a new passion.
Soaked Umbrellas, Whitworth Art Gallery, from £36.95
Embodying the ‘when life gives you lemons’ approach, Soaked Umbrellas think that rain can – and should – be a joyful thing. The Manchester-based brand specialises in really well-made umbrellas in fun, eye-catching designs that you won’t leave in the cafe/pub/museum. And because they’re made with vents, they don’t turn inside out the second there’s a breeze. Speaking of museums – you can buy them in various gift shops around Manchester, including the Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester Museum and Whitworth Art Gallery – as well as online, of course.
Cooking Experience Vouchers, Food Sorcery, various amounts
With cooking schools in Didsbury and the city centre, Food Sorcery is the place to go for cooking classes that range from the sociable to the serious. You can buy gift vouchers (available online, for an amount of your choosing) for a variety of types of classes for duos, parents and teens and more, across loads of different cuisines as well as baking and even coffee-making. A really good gift for ambitious foodies in your life.
Coffee Gift Subscription, Bold Street Coffee, from £31.35
While technically a Liverpool import, Bold Street Coffee are a firm favourite for flat whites, breakfast rolls and eye-catching bakes in the city. You can gift one of their coffee subscriptions entirely tailored to their coffee-drinking habits. Select via brew method, size and grind style, and then select how long you want the subscription to run for. Thoughtful, and properly useful, we think.
Gift Card, Steranko, various amounts
Steranko has been supplying the residents of West Didsbury with the best in independent clothing since long before Burton Road was cool – think Scandi dresses, Scottish knitwear and French workwear. With a gift card, your best dressed friends they’ll be able to pick something they really love, while you get the brownie points for knowing all the cool, independent spots. Win-win.
Neighbourhood Prints, Egoiste Gallery at Affleck’s Palace, from £29
Affleck’s Palace is the undisputed home of alternative shopping in Manchester, and therefore the place to go for a weird and wonderful gift for your most interesting friend. Head up to Egoiste Gallery on the third floor, and there are loads of original artworks and prints from a variety of artists, both local and from further afield. If you’re budget doesn’t quite stretch to a unique commission, these neighbourhood prints by Dave Draws are a joy-filled gift for someone who loves their local area, or perhaps a nostalgic Manc who has moved away. Starting at £29 for the A4 size, it’s a bit of a no-brainer. Affleck’s is open until 5pm on Christmas Eve, so it could really save the day.
Gift box, Batch Bottlestore, various prices
Altrincham’s Batch Bottlestore isn’t just a great place to go for a drink, it’s also an incredibly well-supplied bottle and can shop, stocking beers from some of the most interesting breweries both locally and across the country. Think colourful labels and unpronounceable names. They offer a number of gift box options, and on Christmas Eve they’re open until midnight – you don’t get much more ‘last minute saviour’ than that.
Absolute anything from Amato Products, various prices
Your favourite restaurant’s secret weapon, Amato is a haven of Italian products on an unassuming retail park just out beyond Piccadilly train station. You can get delicious, chef-quality ingredients in wholesale quantities for incredible prices, and if you want to gift a really nice bottle of olive oil or posh wine vinegar you can find it, and loads of other lovely store cupboard bits in the deli shop. They’re open until Christmas eve, so you can thank us later.
Open Fire Dining Club gift cards, various prices
Open Fire Dining Club has had an amazing first year, inviting diners to the quite gorgeous Torr Vale Mill for supper clubs by some of the city’s finest chefs. We’re planning to do it all again in 2026 too, and you can gift a loved one a seat at the table. They can redeem it against any Open Fire event they want to attend. We might be biased, but it’s an impeccable gift for your pal who is always out and about at new restaurants.
Read more:
The best things to do in Manchester this week
The best Manchester gigs and club nights in December 2025
Manchester restaurants join forces for this year’s StreetSmart campaign to support homelessness
