Delight as shops are set to reopen
Retail chief excited for shops and customers to return
After months of closure nonessential shops in Horsham and across the district are preparing to reopen.
The next step of lockdown easing will see stores reopen from Monday, April 12 along with hairdressers, gyms and pubs and restaurants – provided food and drink is served outside.
And the manager of Horsham’s Swan Walk Shopping Centre has said she is delighted to see customers and retailers again.
Gill Buchanan added: “A shopping centre is a community and it’s about its people as well as its product – whether it’s retail staff or customers.
“It’s not a building it’s a living thing and it needs people.
“It’s been a long wait and we’re just delighted to see them back.”
She said stringent Covid secure measures will be in place to keep people safe but she wants the experience to feel as normal as possible.
The manager of Swan Walk Shopping Centre in Horsham has said she is excited to welcome customers back next week.
Restrictions are set to ease from April 12 allowing nonessential retail to reopen along with hairdressers, personal care and outdoor dining.
And Gill Buchanan, Swan Walk Centre manager, is looking forward to those shops opening up for the first time in months.
She said: “It’s been a long wait and we’re just delighted to see them back.
“Excited is the word. To see our customers and our retailers.
“A shopping centre is a community and it’s about its people as well as its product – whether it’s retail staff or customers. It’s not a building it’s a living thing and it needs people.”
Since March 2020 nonessential shops have been subject to yoyoing lockdown restrictions put in place in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus.
They were first ordered to shut in March before reopening in June.
They were then ordered once more to shut in November before briefly reopening in December.
In Sussex non-essential shops have been shut since Boxing Day when the county was put in Tier 4 restrictions, just days before the country was plunged into a third national lockdown.
But Gill is optimistic about this third reopening.
She said: “We’re getting there.
“We will continue to have our Covid secure measures in place.
“We want people to feel normal but also to feel safe.
“Our cafes and restaurants have to wait until May 17 for people to be able to sit.”
Gill also paid tribute to her team of staff who have worked tirelessly over the last 12 months to keep the centre running and people safe.
Swan Walk has remained open throughout the pandemic so people can shop in essential stores.
Gill said: “I would like to take the opportunity to pay credit to all the team on site – who have been on the sharp end keeping the centre open and safe for our customers.
“Without them we would never be able to achieve what we have achieved.”
Horsham District Council said it has put in place several schemes to support the district’s economic recovery.
The council has dedicated its Local Enterprise and Apprenticeship Programme (LEAP) funding to the local start-up sector.
Simon Bedford set up his Billingshurst-based cycle repair services business Revolution Cycle Sport Ltd in 2020 and benefitted from the scheme. He said: “The LEAP grant offered a much-needed injection of funding to help me to get going, not least the purchase of a professional quality workbench and a MucOff Bio Parts Washer.”
A spokeswoman added: “The council will continue to support the retail and high street sectors through a series of recorded specialist information sessions and online drop-in workshops throughout the summer of 2021. Future projects planned for 2021 also include a pop up shop facility in Horsham to aid small independent businesses gain experience of high street trading for the first time, and the council is also set to support the launch of a new artisan market in Henfield, in addition to its Horsham based outdoor markets, all of which provide opportunities for start-up and small businesses to trade.”
We’re just delighted to se them back. We want people to feel normal but also to feel safe.
GILL BUCHANAN
Swan Walk shopping centre manager