Charity shops in Headington: The debate
Please send the Webmaster your comments on the Headington charity shops to be added to the comments below,
From Richard G. Jeffery (30 December 2002):
I'm afraid I am in agreement with the editor’s comment (Oxford Mail,
28 December). It is neither the charity shops nor car parking that
is causing people to desert the shopping centre at Headington, but rather
a lack of the kind of shops they really want.
Anyone wishing to buy fresh fruit and vegetables or fresh meat, rather than the pre-packaged and chemical-ridden kind offered in the supermarkets, must now either travel to the city centre or Cowley Centre.
To be honest, if it were not for the charity shops, London Road would be on a fast track to becoming yet another soulless street of fast-food takeaways, cafés and restaurants as George Street and Park End Street have become in recent years.
Stop knocking the charity shops and wake up to reality.
From Frank Cummings (2 January 2003):
I do hope Mr Jeffery’s comments were made with tongue in cheek, for I cannot believe anyone could be so naive and contradictory within such a short passage of words.
Having traded in Headington since 1985, I have seen very little change to the shopping environment, and what changes there have been in general have been negative. Any positives, such as the extra street furniture, Christmas street-light decorations, subway redecoration, short term parking etc. have been due to a small band of traders – mostly of the independent ilk – whom have worked very hard via the Headington Business Association and thereby have manage to ensure that some semblance of action has been taken over the past five years. Thist has helped Headington to be a more attractive and appealing place, not just for the local traders and consumers but also for our many visitors, which in turn can only help the area to prosper in the future for the benefit of all.
I am very sure that not one of the Headington trading fraternity is against charity shops per se and would agree there is a need for them in this day and age as a complement to any trading centre; but if you will point me in the direction of a thriving mall or shopping centre that is subjected to such a high percentage of charity outlets without having a full complement of other mixed-trading outlets and all locked within its tight boundary confines then I shall be only to pleased to apologise, eat my hat and quit trading immediately, for it would be obvious I should have learned nothing from my experience as a retailer.
While all is expanding, an imploding around the shopping area means that the only area unable to follow suit is the shopping area itself. Restricted by very tight boundary lines with very little chance of retail development within those bounds, it becomes even more vital that the 'retail mix' is kept correct. Unfortunately the charity shops are disturbing this mix, and other traders who may be wishing to come to the area are unable to do so due to retail outlet premises being snapped up by the charities as soon as any premises becomes vacant. While I agree an empty shop is not a pretty sight, providing it is not empty unduly long term then this is all part and parcel of the transient movement of a trading area.
Mr Jeffery states he is dismayed at having to travel further afield to other trading areas to locate the goods he wishes. Surely this statement more than proves my points? When the likes of Williams bicycle shop, Headington Homewares and Headington Jewellers have been laid to rest as was the Butcher, Veg & Fruit shop, Computer shop and the Bed Shop (to name a few who have rolled over – please note all small independents), without an empty outlet there is little chance they will ever reappear, and with Mr Jeffery’s and the Oxford Mail’s attitude they never will. You then have no option other than to accept what the monolithic retail outlets wish to offer you through their great ability to make you feel their goods are what you need. If you are happy with that then fine, but don't moan when you have to travel further afield to try and find some one catering for your need in a mass market, making freedom of choice a relic of the past as all are sucked into the monolithic,m choiceless sameness.
If I were to consider opening a further retail outlet, I'm afraid Headington would be the last place on my shopping list due to its lack of variational mix and limited parking facilities. With regard to parking, I can again assure you that the lack of it has had a very detrimental effect on the business fraternity, as I for one found to my cost some years ago when the very short-term parking was eradicated along the London Road to accommodate the so-important bus lane which takes people through and out of the area rather than bringing them in. This action alone dissipated my repair trade very severely by causing the loss of the countryside catchment area.
Just to finish, £75,000 turnover per annum for a general retail outlet business within Headington, especially on the London Road, would hardly see the back of the rates, rent and our very old friend the vat man, let alone earn a profit to increase its viability. Yes we know, the word profit send people into epilepsy, but it is the only way to maintain a healthy business. As for the new girl on the block at the Oxford Mail; creating a bit of controversial spin must be good for her job, as the Editor is seemingly in agreement! Much better than taking an active interest in Headington’s problems as a whole, but that would be much too boring.
From Richard G. Jeffery (6 January 2003)
With respect to Mr Cummings, I stood for the City Council last year in Central Headington and spoke to shoppers in London Road re their shopping centre.Hence comments in my first epistle on the subject are not necessarily my own.
Here are some points raised by ordinary shoppers.
- A question mark hung over the need for so many fast-food takeaways and eateries now that the football supporting fraternity had migrated to pastures new. (Here George Street and Park End Street were cited as prime examples of this trend, i.e. nobody goes there unless they want to eat something).
- The charity shops were welcomed with open arms, as were any other outlets offering discount goods or saving the shopper money. (In such a climate any charity shops that get too greedy will fail to survive.)
- Elderly people rued the loss of the Butcher and the Greengrocer and would have liked to see a Fishmonger return to Headington, whilst younger people felt that we lacked a good Record shop and a sex shop (though I dismissed this last suggestion as a joke).
- There was a great fondness expressed for Ford’s Hardware, Williams' cycle shop and the Post Office.
- Parking was not an issue, as the people I spoke to walked to the shops in any case.
I stood for the City Council as I felt that Headington had been abused and neglected for too long by successive administrations. Only after a letter of complaint from me to the Oxford Mail were we granted a film show as part of the Fun in the Parks festivities – a film show as an afterthought, when elsewhere in parks around the city we were seeing grand events with marquees, stalls and in some cases hot-air balloons.
During my canvassing I was disgusted by the general apathy of people towards both local politics and their community. Although not happy with their lot, these people felt they had no power to change things.Well that’s wrong and it’s about time we stopped feeling sorry for ourselves and blaming everyone and everything else for all the wrongs!
We can do something about it: the people of Headington have already proved that they can organise a party. (Witness last years Jubilee celebration and the Christmas funday.) For the bringing together of a whole disenfranchised community, let us give birth to an annual Headington Festival, a two-day extravaganza over a summer weekend based in Bury Knowle Park and London Road. Dancing in the street by day and music in the pubs at night. A little bit of something for everyone young and old alike.
O.K., we've only got half a year to put it together, but for a band of committed people it should be possible. Maybe not so grand in its inaugural year, but from small acorns mighty oaks do grow.
I shall immediately throw my own hat into the ring, having organised two days of children’s entertainment at both the Caversham Charity Folk Festival and Wallingford Bunkfest last year. Is anybody else out there willing to give some time and energy towards putting Headington well and truly on the cultural map, attracting people to this fine suburb and cocking a snook at the City Council for giving us only a lousy film show last year?