Independent businesses given free retail space to sell products

LOCAL independent businesses are being given free retail space again to sell their products in the heart of Carmarthen town centre.

The Carmarthenshire Council-run 100% Sir Gar pop-up shop is returning to the empty Debenhams store in St Catherine’s Walk over the Easter school holiday between 10am and 2pm until tomorrow.

It follows the hugely successful 100% Sir Gar pop-up shops held at Christmas and during the February half term holiday, which saw thousands of people flock to the pop up stalls inside the former department store.

New traders using the pop-up for the first time this month include Welsh Soul, Llawn Cariad, Doris and Daughters, Annwyl, and Truly Madly Deeply. Returning will be Cotton Box, Caru Candles, Bodlon, Efail, Louise Arts, Sians Emporium and Melys Neis.

Following Carmarthenshire Council securing use of the former Debenhams unit to continue running its customer service Hwb and tourist information centre, it has decided to allow businesses to use the space once again.

100% Sir Gar was developed during the Covid-19 pandemic as a virtual shop window on the council’s Discover Carmarthenshire website, as a way of supporting local businesses to recover from lockdown.

The page now promotes more than 300 independent businesses from Carmarthenshire, ranging from artists to butchers and those selling everything from clothes to gifts.

Details about the traders and what they sell can be found at www. discovercarmarthenshire.com/ shopping.

Next month the former Debenhams store will be the venue for vote counting following the May 5 local elections.