‘STUDENTS HAVE MADE VILLAGE VIBRANT AGAIN’
TREFOREST is the home of Sir Tom Jones and where the world famous Groggs were founded. It’s also the village where students from across the world travel thousands of miles to study.
If you’ve lived in Pontypridd for most of your life you’d probably think of Treforest as the “student hub” of the town, much like Cathays would be described as the “student hub” of Cardiff. But just because the area is known as the home of students, this doesn’t mean that’s all there is to it.
Many people wouldn’t think of Treforest as a place to hit the shops, with Pontypridd town centre being only a few minutes’ drive down the road. It’s the town centre where you’ll find the indoor market and the main high street that once homed big name brands such as Marks & Spencer, River Island and Clarks.
Over the last year or so Pontypridd town centre has seen many new shops and developments pop up. But, if you take a little time to look, you’ll also find there are some pretty diverse businesses in Treforest.
One person who is keen to speak all about the area’s diversity is Mike Morton, who is the proud owner of Olive’s Attic Cafe.
Mike, 67, has been running the little coffee spot for around four years. He admits he took a leap of faith when he started the business as he spent time as a teacher and an actor before taking the reins at Olive’s. But, just by speaking to him for a few minutes, you can see how happy he is that he took the risk.
“I had never done anything like this before. I was really going in the dark.
“I’m retired and I had always dreamed of running a little cafe. I don’t know why. I think it comes from childhood memories in Pontypridd when we would go out to my favourite cafe. I have always loved cafe culture, so it’s been a little dream I have had for a long time, but I didn’t think I would ever be doing it.”
A few years ago the chance came along to take over the premises on Fothergill Street, and Mike quickly snapped up the opportunity.
Obviously the past 12 months or so have been more difficult due to the coronavirus pandemic. Mike used the first lockdown to make some adjustments to the premises, and said the help businesses like his received from the Welsh Government and the local authority helped to take some of the worry away.
The cafe owner was born and bred in Treforest so the fact his dream has been made a reality in his hometown means all the more to him as he feels he’s able to make a difference to the area.
He’s even been involved in developing a joint enterprise with a team of others, which has involved turning the building next door to the cafe into an arts hub called ARTtic. Here a team are working together to do things like sell local artwork, handcrafted items and promote local music.
Even though so much work has been done over the past few years Mike said people still visit the cafe even now and say “I didn’t realise this was here”. This is something he hopes will change as lockdown restrictions continue to ease, and they are able to host more events such as open mic nights when rules allow.
“We have some lovely students who come in here,” he added.
“If they come in here and they like the coffee then we are doing something right, I would like to think.
“I grew up in Treforest. There was a very vibrant high street when I was a boy. There were lots of different businesses and shops – you didn’t need to go into Pontypridd. It was very diverse.
“That changed somewhat, and then later came along the university. The student population has made it a vibrant place again.
“In one day you can have two people from Rhydyfelin, somebody from Latvia and someone from Lisbon in here. It’s wonderful.”
But business owners in Treforest said the pandemic has had an impact on how many students from the University of South Wales’ campus actually go out and about in the area. With online learning having taken over in the past year, some said the dynamics of the area have started to change, and they aren’t able to rely on students visiting like they could two or three years ago.
Jayne Coleman, 55, has been running Martha’s Homestore for two years. After always having had a love for vintage homeware she decided to take the plunge and open a shop on Park Street, which is only a few minutes down the road from Olive’s Attic.
The little shop sells everything from vintage interiors to locally made items from designers like Coop Ceramics.
Jayne said: “Over the years Pontypridd had the big names. But it’s OK here. I have built up my loyal customers.”
If you don’t know much about Treforest one thing you may have heard of in your time is the Pink Shop.
Quite frankly it can only possibly be described as the area’s own Willy Wonka cave of confectionery that has seen grandparents dragged in off the pavement and ravenous children wristdeep in paper bags full of penny sweets.
Two years ago the well-known shop opened its doors again after it seemingly shut for the last time.
Since then it has been under the watchful eye of Sharon Richards, 51, who admits they are “very lucky” to have been supported so much during the pandemic.
Sharon said: “In the first lockdown we had to diversify. We were selling fresh bread, milk, eggs, duck eggs and we were delivering to the local area. We carried on with that for quite a few months.”
Talking about how the sweet treats have been flying off the shelves, Sharon added: “I think because people haven’t been able to go out they want treats. They couldn’t go to the pub or for a meal so the next best thing is to have some chocolates and treats.
“We have ordered from the USA, New Zealand and we have ordered from Dubai. They all want something a little bit different.”
Even though Sharon admits they have all been flat out throughout the pandemic, she said there have been some changes to the way the team now operates.
Before March 2020 the Pink Shop would usually open its doors at 7am so people could pop in and pick up their treats to take to work. The shop lies opposite the train station, the perfect spot to make the most of passing trade but, with fewer people heading into the city to work now, they decided there was no point in opening the doors until 10am.
Speaking about the students, Sharon added: “They are not going out like they were. People are not going to the station. The mornings are more quiet now.
“We are still busy. Everybody knows the Pink Shop – that’s the thing so we are quite lucky in that respect. “