‘Ghost town’ that became a boom town
ONLINE shopping, out-of-town malls and rocketing rents – all the signs seemed to suggest the high street was dead.
Nowhere did the death knell ring more loudly than Altrincham, in the shadow of the Trafford Centre, which eight years ago was labelled Britain’s bleakest ghost town.
But the Trafford property hotspot has fought back with a new type of town centre – and last week their efforts won them the Champion High Street of England award, seeing off competition from Royal Tunbridge Wells and Richmond.
This is how...
At the heart of the town’s £6m regeneration success is The Market House – a listed building dating back to 1879.
Until recently, you were likely to find stalls selling granny pants, but now it is a foodie haven with top gastronomy from all over the world.
When the M.E.N. visited, it started to fill up before 11am and remained packed throughout the day. People having work meetings or going for coffee, and late-night revellers all make the most of this space.
There’s more great food on the other side of town at Tre Ciccio, where the UK’s Pizza Chef of the Year works.
Tre Ciccio’s marketing manager Georgie Glass, 26, said: “There’s real camaraderie here where businesses support other businesses because everyone wants everyone to do well.”
Part of the success is down to Trafford council’s town centre business growth programme. It allows new ventures to borrow up to £20,000 to set up in vacant units.
One of the many to have taken up this offer is Andy Fielding, owner of Funky Rouge hair boutique on Moss Lane. He said: “In the past five years, Altrincham has become much more of a young person’s environment where it’s great to socialise. There’s a chic clientele but we still have a real mix of people coming here.”
Once, almost a third of shops lay empty. Now it is less than one-in-10. Last year more than 1.7m shoppers visited.
Signs in empty windows once informed shoppers of impending closures. Now they tell of more independent stores setting up.
Martin Duff, 56, owner of jewellers Randalls said: “We now have pride back in Altrincham. Before the regeneration, on Sundays only two or three people would come in during the whole day. Now I lose count.”
High business rates and rent used to push trade away and shoppers started to look to Manchester city centre but things are different now.
He said landlords were being ‘very sensible with rents... enabling independents to survive.’
Martin mentored Claire Burt for a year and she has now set up The Cheese Peddlers just metres from his jewellery shop.
Elderly residents complained to us that ‘there are too many coffee shops’ but Altrincham’s determination to provide a ‘shopping experience’ and community is working.
Randalls hosts Champagne Sundays once a month, Gran T’s coffee house hosts a classic film night, and even big chains like Waterstones are getting involved with book clubs.
Altrincham has rediscovered a sense of community that many towns have lost, while opening its arms to newcomers and new trends.
Altymarket’s Instagram account has nearly 32,000 followers and the Goose Green summer festival attracted more than 6,000 visitors.
Jos Mills, 36, social media manager of the Con Club, a trendy eatery and micro-brewery in a former Working Men’s Conservative Club, said: “You still have the historical feel but it definitely has a trendy vibe now and you can see it’s booming again.”
An Everyman Cinema offers a new option for the night-time economy. You can enjoy pizza and a glass of wine while you watch a movie.
Jonathon Shingfield’s vast art gallery Contemporary, with its painted skateboards and upcycled Mini Coopers, sits next to a Subway franchise.
A message on a blackboard outside the market says earnestly: “We are hoping to change the face of the place in which we all live and work.”
Mission accomplished.