THE HERMITAGE IS NOW VIRTUALLY EVERYWHERE

YOU CAN CHECK OUT THE HERMITAGE ON-LINE STORE AT WWW.HERMITART. COM/STORE AT ANYTIME. TO SEE THE ITEMS IN THE WOOD, STONE, SILVER, BRASS OR METAL, DROP IN AT THE REAL WORLD STORE AT 28 GOWER STREET, COLOMBO 5.

The Hermitage has long been one of Colombo's most delightful shopping experiences. It is famous for its sometimes weird but always wonderful selection of exotic art, antiques, furniture, stonework, jewellery and collectibles, all housed in a lovely old bunga- low down Gower Street. So it might come as a surprise that this quaint little establishment has become one of the very few retailers in Sri Lanka to place its entire inventory on the web with a cutting-edge on-line store.

Today, a shopper can simply log on to www.hemitart.com/store, and browse the whole Hermitage collection in a beautifully designed web environment. Everything is comprehensively photographed and described. They are thoughtfully organized into categories, so finding something is a breeze. The purchasing process is simple and familiar – just add items to the shopping cart, and then check out through the secure payment gateway. All major credit cards are accepted, and the items can be delivered anywhere in Sri Lanka.

Unlike with a mass retailer, the catalogue at the Hermitage is constantly changing and much of the stock consists of unique or extremely rare pieces. The exquisite silver bracelets are individually crafted, so no two are exactly alike. The antique books and postcards are some of the last surviving examples. Even the furniture section features many handmade one-off's.

Consequently, setting up the Hermitage webstore was a major logistical and aesthetic challenge. “We wanted it to always be up-to-date and complete, while being easy to use,” says Co-proprietor Ms. Safiya Husain. “We also wanted it to capture some of the spirit of our physical store,” adds her partner Yasmin Akbarally, “that joy of discovery that we're known for.” The results have been very encouraging, with orders coming in from as far afield as Hong Kong.