Businesses line up to join our campaign

Businesses have been backing The Scarborough News’s Love Your High Street campaign, in which we are calling on residents to spend in local shops otherwise they will be lost. Scarborough Market Hall is often referred to as one of the town’s hidden gems.

Among the 45 stores that have made this venue their home is Gekoglass, a glass and marble shop on the first floor.

Owner Lindsay Broddle has been running the business for four years and, recently, has been attending a course to develop her presence online as a way to adapt to the recent changes to people’s shopping habits.

Although she appreciates the convenience of trading and buying online, Lindsay still thinks that physically visiting shops is important.

She said: “Online is fantastic, don’t get me wrong, but it’s nice for people to come in and a lot of our products are very tactile so with glass marbles, people like to come in and hold them and touch them. All the wood that we’ve got is locally hand-turned so people like to come and touch it, they can hold it and see how heavy it is, if it will fit in their house and if it’s the right colour.

“Sometimes online you can be tricked to think it’s one thing and then it’s not.

“If you come in and you see something you like you can just buy it and that way you’re supporting local businesses. You’re helping us and our money will then go back into the community.

“In terms of what’s going on now, the horrible phrase of ‘the death of the high street’ is used all the time and we don’t think there’s a death of the high street. We think that people can’t be bothered, they can just press ‘go’ on the internet and it’s posted to them without having to leave the house.

“I’m just as guilty sometimes but I think we all have a responsibility to put our coats on and go into town, even if it’s just once a month and even if you just spend a fiver.

“We’ve got a promotion at the minute, ‘just buy a card’. The whole ethos of that is that even if you only buy a card in a shop, that’s still revenue for them and they will survive. If people spend under a fiver in your shop it’s still better than not spending anything at all and we’d rather have a little bit than nothing.”

Having been based in the market for a year, Lindsay has now taken over the space next door, a move that will allow her to expand her business and start selling furniture.

She added: “You have to take the risk, we want to push our business and we don’t want it to become stagnant.

“We went to a trade fair back in September and we were inspired by seeing lots of new products, lots of different things coming in from Europe and with that in mind, we started to look for new premises because we decided our space here wasn’t big enough.

“Then next door they handed their notice in and it was just a great opportunity for us to expand rather than move. We didn’t want to leave the market, it’s a fantastic venue and lots of people come here for lots of different reasons.”

After undergoing a major revamp only a year ago, the Market Hall has now become one of the main go-to areas for shopping in Scarborough. But according to Market Superintendent at Scarborough Borough Council, Penny Beniston, there’s still a lot more people who could use it.

She said: “The market relies on local visitors, especially during the winter months. We’re lucky that we get a lot of visitors during the summer but at the end of the day it’s a local market and needs to be supported by local people.

“I think that people know how it used to be but they have not seen how good it is now. The refurbishment has brought a breath of fresh air, it’s very bright and fresh. It’s a fantastic place. It’s gone from being very traditional and old to being a very modern open space but still keeping the character.

“There’s something for everyone. You can go and buy bread, fruit for your every day shopping and if you’re looking for something more quirky you’ve got the Market Vaults. It ticks a lot of boxes.”

Talking about the growth of online shopping, Mrs Beniston believes that it’s something that businesses should embrace whilst also continuing to make sure that people are physically driven to the venue.

Today, an app to make shopping in the market easier and more accessible is being launched.

“Marketti” will allow shoppers to have a look at what’s available in the market and from 2019, it will also offer shoppers a Click and Collect service as well as the benefits of a Rewards and Loyalty programme.