Video: An Aladdin’s Cave of Scarborough’s forgotten history

Now the famous family-run business has unearthed an unexpected hoard of treasure.

The stash of costume jewellery was discovered in a storeroom after being hidden away for more than half a century.

The hundreds of unworn brooches, clip-on earrings and bangles, dating from the 1930s to the 1950s, were cleared from the shelves after being deemed too dated for trendsetters in the swinging 60s.

Now they are the height of vintage fashion, which is followed by everyone from style gurus Kate Moss and Alexa Chung to music stars Florence Welch and Alex Turner.

The sought-after jewellery looks set to be one of the main attractions at a forthcoming vintage fair at The Spa in Scarborough.

“It’s an amazing find not least because everything is on the original cards and has the original price tags. They’re going to appeal to those who simply want to wear them and to collectors who will keep them as a display item,” says Debi Silver, co-founder of Advintageous, which is staging the event on May 6.

The remarkable collection is proof that “what goes around comes around,” says Celia Wherritt, whose late father Gordon thought they were too old-fashioned to sell.

“We knocked two shops into one and did a big renovation in the early 1960s and that’s when he put them all away.

“My nephew was rooting round in the stock room recently and found trays of them in a cupboard. He thought we should put a few of them out on the counter and it’s amazing how well they have sold.

“They are immaculate but we couldn’t believe how excited people have been about them. It’s opened our eyes to the fact that they are all the rage.”

Brooches make up the bulk of the collection and have price tags ranging from 2/11 (two shillings and 11 pence) to 15 shillings. Many sport the proud boast “genuine plastic” and all of them have “Made in England” stamped on their packaging.

“It’s been a trip down memory lane and we’ve had a really good laugh about some of them,” says Celia, who runs the shop on Eastborough with her sister Sharon and brother Graham.

“There’s a lot of kangaroo brooches that have ‘A Present from Scarborough’ and “A Present from Wherritts” on them, which is hilarious because as far as I know there have never been any kangaroos here in Scarborough.

“There are also quite a few elephants too, which must’ve been fashionable in the 50s.”

Celia’s daughter Charlotte and Sharon’s daughter Emily are in charge of the stall at the vintage fair and will be charging between £5 and £10 for each piece of jewellery.

Another highlight of the event will be a collection of handbags belonging to a local resident who has kept them since she bought them in the 1940s and 50s.

Other stalls will feature vintage and retro homeware and fashion from the 1920s to the 1980s along with vinyl records, which have also experienced a spectacular renaissance. A vintage hair and beauty parlour, a display of scooters and bikes plus live music from Mickey Ramsbottom and the Alka Seltzer Sisters will also be featured.

The event is attracting interest from far and wide because of the popularity of vintage items.

No-one is quite sure when secondhand became vintage, but the early 80s saw a trend for “granny and grandad chic” and students enjoyed hunting for 40s and 50s-styles in charity shops.