VIEW FROM HERE
Our high streets should be the beating heart of our communities, says Susy Smith. Time to stand up for the independent shop…
Susy Smith on supporting independent shops on the great British high street
We all know that the secret to saving our high-street shops is to support them. There is a sense, though, that we’re fighting a losing battle. In some areas, there are more shops boarded up than are open for business. Last autumn, the government committed £95m to revive some of Britain’s ‘most historic’ high streets but that still leaves those considered less architecturally interesting to their own devices. And, as think-tanks across the land wrack their brains for workable solutions, the general view is that our beleaguered communities might soon be unrecognisable as the vital hubs they once were.
I was delighted, therefore, on moving back to the outskirts of London after many years in the countryside, to discover several of my favourite independent shops still thriving on my local high street. Of course, they now sit alongside a number of new services: if I want my nails painted, my beard trimmed or a leisurely cup of speciality coffee, I am spoilt for choice. These ‘retail experiences’, which cannot be replicated online, are the new success stories. How so many of them can survive quite baffles me. Ashford in Kent, for example, reportedly supports 28 hair salons. Do the locals there stand out as particularly well coiffured, I wonder?
Thankfully, these independent shops clearly have what it takes to endure. The one you can smell before you see – the fishmonger’s – is always bustling. The staff banter and whistle, and always attend to customers with a cheery smile. There’s an aura of breezy confidence about them: they clearly know everything there is to know about fish and are happy to share it. Their produce, delivered daily from the coast and Billingsgate, is displayed in the large picture window, tempting me in to buy a couple of kippers for breakfast or freshly caught trout for tea. Then I spot the samphire and fresh herbs on the counter, or the appealing range of home-made sauces, and suddenly I’m buying prawns and monkfish, too. “And I’ll have half a dozen eggs and some venison sausages as well, please.” (The shop also sells some meat and game.) No wonder the local populace has remained loyal to this exemplary business for more than 40 years. At Christmas, they queue round the block for its turkeys.
A few doors along is an old-fashioned greengrocer’s, where they display the goods outside on the pavement – market-stall style– and shout to advertise the day’s bargains. A sign announces: “Bananas A Speciality!” On a recent visit, I picked up a gorgeous head of cavolo nero, wondering how I might use it. Straightaway, the manager recommended blending it with pine nuts, black garlic and Parmesan to make a pesto for spaghetti. I tried it, loved it and it has now become a staple supper dish.
Close by, we have an artisan bakery, a butcher’s shop and a farmers’ market every Saturday morning. For needs other than comestibles, there’s a flooring specialist and an upholsterer, a shoe shop and a school uniform specialist. Two of my favourite businesses are a seamstress, who has made me cushion covers, and a shoe-mender, who revitalises my much-loved winter boots.
But, best of all, we have a seed-merchant’s. Still with a shop front dating from 1913, the business began in 1886, when the founder sold corn and seed to local smallholders. His grandson and great-grandson are now the proprietors and, while still selling loose grass seed and fertilisers, they have expanded their business to cater for modern-day needs. Racks of seed packets, bulbs and dahlia tubers have been joined by a selection of container-grown plants, plus a hardware section. Anglers are drawn in by the sign proclaiming “Fishing Tackle and Bait Sold Here” and pet-owners come, often accompanied by their pooches, to purchase essential supplies. This is where we buy our logs, wild bird feed and herbaceous plants. I love the higgledy-piggledy layout and often find something I wasn’t looking for!
What all these merchants offer is expertise, enthusiasm and a commitment to friendly personal service. And here we hit upon why saving our high-street shops is as vital for us as it is for them: they are lynch pins in our communities. For some customers, the conversation with a local shopkeeper is the only one they’ll have all day. Delightful as supermarket staff may be, they just don’t have the same time to engage with us. And that is why we must support our local shops when we can: in a world where so much of our communication is via a faceless keypad, this human contact provides a lifeline we can’t afford to lose.