Business bounces back after being turfed out of centre
Trader finds new premises in Carrick Street
A fledgling town business which faced collapse earlier this year has relocated to another part of Ayr.
Sports Prints, owned by Steven Mackie, faced a bleak future when the businessman was told his regular pitch at the Kyle Centre was being removed.
Steven set up shop at the Kyle Centre in November 2020 but weeks later, he was forced to close when Covid-19 restrictions came into force.
The Post reported in February how the multi-million pound Kyle Centre would not reopen when the national lockdown ended.The decision by owners Alloway (Scotland LLP), ended a 33-year trading association with the town and left as many as 15 traders without a pitch.
The closure announcement was quickly followed by the news that Irish-based cinema chain Arc Cinema had signed a long-term lease as part of a £5-6 million deal to redevelop the mall in Ayr High Street.
Bars, restaurants, indoor golf, virtual reality hubs and soft play areas are part of the grand scheme, which includes a multi-screen boutique cinema experience. It still left existing traders at the Kyle Centre with an uncertain future. Months on, Steven has finally found a new base in nearby Carrick Street - and has rebranded his business and called it ‘Ayr We Go’. It sells various football prints, canvasses of stadiums and football players, with some of the items signed.
Steven’s also branched out and sells gifts with an Ayr theme to it.
He said: “I’m now open on Carrick
Street and I’ve moved into the old opticians which had been closed for at least 10 years. There’s also another small shop opened up on the same street selling things like handmade soaps etc. And with HMV in the High Street and another small business in Newmarket Street, it’s starting to look promising for our town again.”