Our town – being pro-active
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Posts
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There was a good point made on one of the other threads about the effort put into stopping things happen rather than making things happen.
There has been a lot of threads about the demise of our town centre over the last few months – how people travel to Broughton and Chester for both better convenience, choice and experience.
We can moan all we like, but the only way things are likely to get better is by increasing the number of people like you and me who often go elsewhere to choose to shop local first and foremost.
So ahead of Christmas, before I go to Chester or Trafford I will ask myself what of those things I can get from Wrexham – and I will shop their first. At the moment it might not be a better experience or day out, and it might mean I need to also go to Chester at some point – but instead of writing rants on here I can at least do something constructive and I will encourage my friends and family to do the same.
We should be proud to shop in our local town, ultimately it is only us who can make this difference.
Driving to Broughton and back costs me around five pounds in fuel. You can work out your own cost here. Also the parking there might be free but in the run up to Christmas it’s just too busy and frustrating to use the place.
So I gladly pay a couple of pounds to park in town.
I so agree with you ddraig. We still have lots of the top retailers in town, M&S, Debenhams, Next and BHS as well as a host of smaller and local stores, so lets use them. I actually get Christmas gift ideas as I walk around the shops, which for me makes Christmas shopping easier. I actually like to see what I’m buying, so tend not to shop online.
I also look for unusual gifts which I can find in the markets in town, like the coffee and tea shop on High St or the lady who sells jams and chutney in the Butchers Market. Last Christmas a friend mentioned a long lost book he wanted to read again, I found a second hand copy in Wrexham and he was delighted. Much more fun than Amazon!!!
Regarding the regeneration of our town centre.
Recently there have been some interesting and pertinent posts onto social media which ideally I would like to be copied onto Wrexham.com main forum.Is there any way future comments, surveys, requests etc from these particular posters ( Wrexham Savers, Wrexham Business Group ) could be posted on Wrexham.com ?
I am not aware of any reasons why not ?I have a reason why so.
I do not have a Facebook, and the majority of my friends etc similarly either no longer use Facebook or use it much less than previously.
We tend to use Snapchat, Instagram, Whatsapp or even good old fashioned texting, occasionally we even gulp talk to each other.
Conversely, our parents and grandparents use Facebook a lot.I think it would be of benefit to reach the younger demographic that read Wrexham.com forum ( often as unregistered guests ) to make a habit of using Wrexham.com alongside Facebook as this would reach everybody interested.
Most people I know that heavily use Facebook are over 40.
Although older shoppers are essential for town centre businesses its crucial to target the younger ones too, especially with such a large student community.Hopefully nobody objects – this is the kind of thing I mean.
From Wrexham.com Facebook :Paul Redfern
“A Local Business man has been given the task of trying to put this together. I now wonder if people could let us know any thoughts or ideas they may have on this, HI their Some people might know and others may not I own Links Tours and Travel in Wrexham. I and my business partner are part of the Designation Wrexham Team and active members Wrexham Business Group aiming to regenerate the town. With this in mind I have been asked to come up with an event and would like your thoughts on holding Wrexham’s First Transport Show. Would you attend and if so what date would you like to see this held? “From Wrexham Savers Facebook : Nigel Lewis
” We get fed up with hearing so many people complaining about the town ! Towns all over the UK have declined and why? is it parking, rents and rates – yes partly . But consider this. It has taken our fathers, grandfathers and hundreds of prior generations to develop our towns. It has taken half a generation – OUR generation to destroy them with out of town shopping developments, the big 4 massive supermarkets, and the internet . It is up to OUR generation – business, council and PEOPLE to improve our towns for our children and grandchildren or WE will be the last to remember the town for what it was – a community. Approximately 5 million a weeks leave Wrexham to the big 4 supermarkets and the internet. Is it any wonder the town has declined. So you see every single person here including myself is responsible for the decline of the town. I have decided to do something about it. I launched the Wrexham savers card to encourage local spend – 20,000 people now have card. I joined the Federation of Small Business Committee to push the campaign for fairer rates. I was elected Chairman of The Town Centre Forum where this matter was raised. I helped organise the Small Business Saturday 0n 6th December and I am a founder members of the Wrexham Business Group. There are so many people starting to work together on the town improvements. Dozens of things are on agenda – Late night opening is only one consideration. In a survey almost 60% of people voted in favour or late night opening. If a only fraction of those actually spend money in the town rather than the internet or supermarkets it will be one thing to start reversing the change. The more people that use what we have , the more it will improve. Now the issue is not what people suggest and complain about but what can YOU do to improve your town. Perhaps spend 10% of your supermarket or internet spend in the town,. Why not join one of the groups making a difference – for info email [email protected] for . It is ALL of our responsibility to regenerate towns – if you want a better town use or lose what we have, roll your sleeves up and help me and others get stuck in or contribute to its decline. “If we want our great town back, we’ll need to make it appropriate to the consumer. A town is a social experince that is pleasant, invigorating and fulfilling for the individual; it is a community that embraces and nurtures the retired, provides a platform for busy business people, and nurtures young people in education through a demonstration of behaviour and culture.
Once a town is a ‘good and great place to be’, it needs to consistently provide for retail and service needs, from the basic weekly shop, through items for special occasions, to that annual big purchase. A lot will be done on the internet, but a big proportion of shopping decisions are returning to a visit to the store. How we bridge the need to visit a store and then make an internet purchase, is a challenge retail owners are working through at the moment …
Towns are about behaviour, culture, and trust. Those things take a generation to build (as we grow up in a community), and are lost overnight. Wrexham had Astons furnishings, Stephensons cafe, a host of big names (a great M&S in Hope St), great indoor markets with personalised shops and services, great pubs, and appealed to people right across the a Wrexham community.
Wrexham has declined, whereas other towns and communities held tight, stayed true to form, and rode it out (while investing in parts of its economy it could, such as technological and creative industry growth and hub working; and selling its unique services or goods into desirable overseas markets).
Wrexham has to choose the person and personality it wants to be, and then live that life consistently in the community of people with whom it socialises and does business. North Wales, Manchester, Cardiff, Cheshire, Liverpool, Stafford, London, Lisburn …are all people that we work with on a day to day basis, and rely on and form part of ou community values.
Hope this is the place to put this and if anybody can put this anywhere else including outside of this forum please do.
A friend of mine has been tasked with this job and is looking for some feedback and anyone with any knowledge or skills or even if you own transport and are willing to bring it along anything to do with it would be appreciated.
HI their
Some people might know and others may not I own Links Tours and Travel in Wrexham. I and my business partner are part of the Designation Wrexham Team and active members Wrexham Business Group aiming to regenerate the town. With this in mind I have been asked to come up with an event and would like your thoughts on holding Wrexham’s First Transport Show. Would you attend and if so what date would you like to see this held[QUOTE=Skive2004;17773
HI their
Some people might know and others may not I own Links Tours and Travel in Wrexham. I and my business partner are part of the Designation Wrexham Team and active members Wrexham Business Group aiming to regenerate the town.I note from your brochure that in January you are running trips to Bolton Market, Bury Market, Stockport Market, Ormskirk Market and Skipton Market.This will go a long way to regenerate Wrexham by taking people away from the town.:)
You need to get in touch with Clwyd Vintage who alredy run a number of similar events in the area Clwyd Veteran And Vintage Machinery Society Ltd Our Next Annual Show
Do you also have links with the travel agents in the ares that you take trips to to arrange reverse trips back to Wrexham!!
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