Supporting Local Shops

[tommy]

In the next hour I will be checking out the great organic fruit and veg stall set up outside the small art gallery (Idea Space) on Bellenden Road - and the gallery sells home made cakes on a saturday as well - yum

Then I'll go across the road to buy some lovely organic bread from Lucius & Richards

[Pickle]

We are lucky to have such fantastic shops, so I do my best to support them. My particular favourites:

AJ Farmers - no matter how bizarre the item, they stock it! Have never been disappointed in my 4.5 years of living in ED.

Greetings - really friendly couple run it, good selection of cards. The lady always gets me mixed up with someone she knows, and asks me how my Mother is getting on (my Mum lives in NZ, has certainly never met the lady from Greetings!).

Northcross Rd market - all the stalls are fantastic. Many a birthday present has been bought, the cake stall is amazing, love the food stall beside it... all the food is made by the lady who sells it and she's great at telling you exactly what's in it. The fudge stall is my favourite, I think I'm addicted.

ED - nice range of stuff, great for last minute presents. Their sale is good, nice clothing at really reasonable prices.

Hope & Greenwood - mmmmmmmm

I've also used the butchers many times and love the products they sell. I'm still to try Moxons but from passing it looks lovely.

The shops are what make ED different to other areas, so I for one hope that they all manage to survive the increasing rents and chain store invasion!

[Nero]

Further up LL, which hasn't featured as much as the lower parts in this thread yet, Karavan is good, and Jacks is a great cafe. Nero

[tarynlondon]

Thanks everyone for all your fantastic advice. I'm heading down to do some shopping today and I look forward to checking out a few new shops that you all have recommended. It's so nice to have such a great variety in this little neck of the woods!

p.s. Pickle - I'm addicted to the fudge at Northcross Rd market too!!!

[Quaywe]

Here yee all ED Indie stores: Please change your midweek opening hours so we can shop in your indie stores in the evenings! For anything foodie related I reckon you'd do a roaring trade if you remained open for us ED'ites to pick up a quick meal on the way home.

In particular I would like to see the following shops remain open at least Weds-Fri:

SMBS

William Rose (seriously, this shop could be open 24x7 and still have a queue out the door the whole time!)

Moxons

AJ Farmer

Those three stores (+ AJF for when your potato peeler breaks and you need an urgent replacement or there'll be no mash!) remaining open would make a serious dent in Somerfield/Sainsbury's midweek evening shoppers revenue. Even if they don't, who cares? I know some of us will be very happy!

Why not give it a trial run Indie's - say Wed-Fri until 7pm for a month??? Go on, you know you want to!

All those in favour?

[Marmora Man]

Quaywe Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Here yee all ED Indie stores: Please change your

> midweek opening hours so we can shop in your indie

> stores in the evenings! For anything foodie

> related I reckon you'd do a roaring trade if you

> remained open for us ED'ites to pick up a quick

> meal on the way home.

>

> In particular I would like to see the following

> shops remain open at least Weds-Fri:

>

> SMBS

> William Rose (seriously, this shop could be open

> 24x7 and still have a queue out the door the whole

> time!)

> Moxons

> AJ Farmer

>

> Those three stores (+ AJF for when your potato

> peeler breaks and you need an urgent replacement

> or there'll be no mash!) remaining open would make

> a serious dent in Somerfield/Sainsbury's midweek

> evening shoppers revenue. Even if they don't, who

> cares? I know some of us will be very happy!

>

> Why not give it a trial run Indie's - say Wed-Fri

> until 7pm for a month??? Go on, you know you want

> to!

>

> All those in favour?

I support this strongly - but would add Cheese Block & Pretty Traditional to the list. If three late nights is not possible a mid week Wed / Thu late night opening would be good.

[SeanMacGabhann]

I think this idea has been mooted before with opinion divided - there is no doubt several shops would benefit financially - it's just a question of do they want to do the hours or does their lease prevent it?

The good stuff that I can't get anywhere else (William Rose etc) I have learned to buy at the weekend in advance and freeze as necessary.

Off Topic now.... am I the only person who can't read Marmora Man's sig without singing Neil Young's Transformer Man?

[monica]

I have already spoken to some of the mentioned retailers and as they said,they are open long hours already,plus most are open on sunday,so good luck but i cant see this happening.

[SeanMacGabhann]

That's pretty much my opinion too Monica but I think I'm in a minority - I understand why people do want the shops open later but if I work an 8am to 5pm day I can't expect the shopowners to work 7am til 9pm. Like I say I can work around it (and still not resort to - well, you know where ;-) )

[monica]

mmm i think i know what you meanB)

[Marmora Man]

SeanMacGabhann Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I think this idea has been mooted before with

> opinion divided - there is no doubt several shops

> would benefit financially - it's just a question

> of do they want to do the hours or does their

> lease prevent it?

>

> The good stuff that I can't get anywhere else

> (William Rose etc) I have learned to buy at the

> weekend in advance and freeze as necessary.

>

> Off Topic now.... am I the only person who can't

> read Marmora Man's sig without singing Neil

> Young's Transformer Man?

More details - what is Transformer Man? Should I be pleased or offfended?

[Administrator]

Stay on topic please

[Louisa]

I think its disgraceful that a shop cannot open longer hours. This is why so many smaller independents fail in the long term. Sainsburys will stay open 24 hours which is great for someone who has to work long days and is then stumped for shopping in the evening.

[LostThePlot]

Louisa Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Sainsburys will stay open 24 hours which is great for someone

> who has to work long days and is then stumped for

> shopping in the evening.

It has that benefit, but for me the benefit is to avoid the buggies and screaming ferrals by shopping at either 7:30am as I did to day, or about midnight. Problem is at midnight it is chaotic with stacking trolleys. Morning is better, everything is displayed correctly, all facing forward nice and neatly and really appeals to my desire for order and neatness ;-) SO much so I was in too minds about getting my Soya mild from the row behind, so as not to ruin anyones good work...

I think I may need help...

[JoeChuff]

> The good stuff that I can't get anywhere else

> (William Rose etc) I have learned to buy at the

> weekend in advance and freeze as necessary.

at risk of going off topic, does organic meat lose any of its taste when it's frozen? I only eat meat at the weekends at the mo...

[SeanMacGabhann]

Joe - apologies I thought I had replied to this earlier today - oops

What I tend to do is to eat the premium stuff (porterhouse steaks, juicy birds) within the next few days and to freeze the hardy-perennials (mince beef/lamb, rump steak for stews) for use later in the week when I will be using lots of chilis, wine etc and the underlying flavour (if it even is affected) of the meat isn't as important

[JoeChuff]

thanks! I guess the meat from W Rose will keep for a couple of days, and then I can eat Sainsbury's fish towards the end of the week, which I find is fine... although maybe that's a good reason for W Rose to open late just on Wednesdays, to let commuters restock