Objects of Use

Only recently ordered online but am thrilled with their products & my new find. Great eco packaging too. I love almost every piece of homeware they sell. The only one stop household shop you need ever know! Old school simplicity & style.

-Well presented
-Plenty of useful objects
-Staff didn't acknowledge customers walking in
-Pricey items but sourced well

well presented shop but with a daft owner that doesn’t understand how customer service works. the shop does not have baskets or bags to put the items you want to purchase. they expect you to go up and tell them about every small little thing you want OR juggle them in your arms OR go up to the counter and interrupt the clerk and customer transaction happening so you can shove your items down on an already crowded counter

all I can say is that as a repeat customer, being told I had never been seen in the shop seemed a bit odd to me to be honest. Well I do not plan on returning again as there are other small businesses I would rather support mainly ones that actually sell local goods, NOT imports!

Wonderful shop full of serious and playful stuff. Friendly staff and reasonably priced. Loved it.

Objects of Use is an absolute gem of a small shop. Its concept is executed with complete skill, resulting in every stocked Object, large or small, being delightfully consistent in its ability to stand the test of time and provide pleasing utility. Having now moved away from Oxford, I'm grateful that the website is almost as enjoyable to browse as the shop itself. The care with which mail order packages are assembled gives one a further taste (or reminder) of the in-store experience. Long may the shop stand on Market Street and provide its perfectly curated selection of Useful Objects!

One of those shops where if you could, you would just buy everything. This is a super little shop off the beaten track in Oxford. It’s the kind of place where you’d go for that thingymabob that you can’t quite describe but know it exists. It’s all beautifully curated. Check it out for - garden equipment/hand tools, general household utility items, kitchen knives and much more!

I’ve always loved the shop in Oxford and the uniqueness of the items.

However, I had a disappointing online experience: I ordered an oxhorn letter opener as a gift, which was reasonably priced, but unfortunately the item itself was not a very high quality. It felt light and plasticky, especially compared to another oxhorn letter opener I already own and oxhorn teaspoons.

The real disappointment was with the customer service. A somewhat passive aggressive lady called to tell me that I was wrong about the quality, and that it was due to it being a smaller item, even after I told her about the comparisons. She mentioned that the letter openers vary in quality though, but when I asked her to send a replacement of a higher quality, she said they were too low on stock. Her final blow was that return postage would have to be paid by me as I simply didn’t like the item and it wasn’t their fault that the quality wasn’t as advertised. I do consider quality rather than taste to be different measures, so will unfortunately have to burden the cost.

This has left a sour taste in my mouth and so I advise not using their online shop unless you are 100% sure of the item, though I still may visit in store.

My absolute favourite find on a short break in Oxford, so full of beautiful and varied useful things, many of which took me back to time with my grandparents and various high quality objects of everyday use. Found a wonderful carbon steel knife that is SO sharp. Oh, and prices are remarkably reasonable. Will be back anytime I am in Oxford.