E gloom.. new hope as boutique shops move in
, a new breed oved into the re being consland a Busistrict, which work together ey believe will o t fa l l and e. up, Incredible Edible Bute, to encourage islanders to grow fruit and vegetables in public spaces for anyone to pick for free.
Sophie Reid runs ladies’ clothing boutique The Dressing Room.
The shop has sofas where customers are encouraged to sit and chat, have a flick through a magazine, or allow their children to play with toys stored in a basket.
Sophie, 41, said: “What’s happening in Bute Street is exactly what we want to see happening here – and a lot of people are already working hard to achieve the same. stage in his window display. Signs advertise offers such as “Buy one sock, get one free” and “Ten-fingered gloves for sale”.
He said: “I’ve been in business here for 53 years and have learned that to be successful, you have to be more than a shop.
“As well as selling all the things we do, we enjoy chatting with customers and making people smile.
“We’re a social centre as well as a shop – and that’s what the whole street needs to be.
“It sounds like that is what they are doing in Treorchy’s Bute Street.”
Bute Pets’ owner John Simpson likes to go the extra mile in customer service, including helping customers carry heavy bags of pet 2 newsagents
3 cafes
1 dance school 3 hairdressers/barbers 2 Co-ops
2 charity shops
1 pet shop 2 off-licences (one is a standard off-licence, the other is Spirit of Bute who sell/make gin/whisky/other gifts) 2 banks
1 hardware store 1 bookmakers food to their cars and giving all dogs who visit the store a treat.
John, 52, said: “We have events like a Gay Pride parade that goes through the town, and lots of different events over Christmas too – but it could be more joined up.”
Keith McIntyre, 48, opened Spirit of Bute two years ago and makes and sells his own gins and whisky.
He said: “I’d love to see Bute f ind itself in the same boat as Skye – so bu s t l ing w i t h tourists it’s too busy at cer tain times of the year.
“Our business is relatively new to the town but I’ve felt the community spirit. The f ishmongers use my liqueurs to smoke salmon.”
William McFie, 4 clothes shops 1 bakers
3 chemists
1 bargain goods chain 1 PC repair shop 1 florist
1 fishmonger
1 bike repair/outdoor pursuits shop
1 gift shop
1 furniture shop 2 baby shops
1 pub
1 arcade
2 empty units 76, opened Bute Tools 41 years ago. It’s a traditional hardware store and sells everything from cushions and candles to popcorn makers and plugs.
He said: “As businesses, we have to look to the future and work together to improve things as custom has got a lot quieter over the years. It’s up to us ourselves to make things better.”
Leigh Sparks, a professor of retail studies at Stirling University, says the business model built in Treorchy could work well across the country.
He said: “Treorchy has always had its own story to tell and communities across Scotland need to work together better to show the identities of their towns and high streets.
“Over the last 40 years, we have decentralised our town centres, moving schools, universities, hospitals, offices and shops to out- of-town locations where it’s easier to build and people can park.
“For our high streets to thrive we’ve got to give people reasons to come back into the town centre – and that is what Bute Street seems to have done so well.”
Marketing expert Professor Alan Wi lson, of Strathclyde University, added: “Castle Douglas is making a name for itself as a food town, West Kilbride has lots of craft enterprises that have opened up and Wigtown attracts lovers of books, not just during its book festival.
“Things like events, festivals and farmers’ markets bring people into the community. Retail alone isn’t enough.
“When the community works together, it makes all the difference – as Bute Street in Wales shows.”