We d love you to join us!...

Transcription

1 Wantage We d love you to join us! 38,675 people Population of the catchment area 205 million Total retail spend by the Wantage catchment area every year

2 Both the rural and urban community in Wantage show a loyalty to local shops and businesses, thereby supporting the independent retailers in the town. This is quite a unique feature and the broader and more diverse the range of businesses in the town the more viable and sustainable the town will become. The knock-on effect will encourage both local and tourist footfall in helping to support, promote and maintain this beautiful historic town, which King Alfred would be proud of! Bernard and Gill, Opal The lovely thing about Wantage is the people. Our customers enjoy browsing among our many books; we enjoy their enthusiasm. Sue and Phil, Regent Furniture and Books I love our town. There is a growing sense of community and my little shop is very well loved. We need some more diverse and exciting shops to join us! Debbie at Spoilt Silly

3 We d love you to join us!......that s the message from our existing retail and hospitality business owners and managers in Wantage town centre, as we look to build on the momentum we have and further strengthen our shopping offer. Wantage is a traditional market town with a wonderful character and feel about it and, as such, specialist independent trading works well here. Locals love us, a great mix of the big guys for your everyday needs, but not so many that we look like any other high street. I love the quirky facades, the small side streets to investigate, the cobbles and the quaint feeling the whole place gives you. The independent shop community is warm and friendly, we often borrow change, till rolls etc., from each other and the town is small enough to be personal but large enough to give us all great trade. Wendy, The Stamp Attic We have an attractive, historic market town with a strong mix of small independent shops and well known national names. We are determined to add to that, and secure a future for Wantage as a vibrant and thriving retail and visitor destination. We ve created this guide for owners of independent shops, would-be start up retail businesses, and property managers for larger retail and hospitality chains, to highlight the benefits of doing business in Wantage. It s at the heart of our campaign to promote Wantage town centre to potential new businesses. It d be great to see you here! Signed Matthew Barber Leader, Vale of White Horse District Council David Buckle, Chief Executive, Vale of White Horse District Council Fiona Roper Mayor of Wantage Bill Falkenau Town Clerk John Naish President, Wantage & District Chamber of Commerce

4 Wantage is a warm and welcoming town and has responded very positively to our delicatessen since it opened in There is a thriving community of independent businesses and traders in the town, an active Chamber of Commerce, plus events like the Dickensian Night, (Not Just) Betjeman Festival and Wantage Carnival. Annette and Michael, Umami Wantage is a friendly market town, where businesses can succeed if they are focused on customer service, which in return brings strong customer loyalty. The team at Peter Ledbury Wantage is a lovely town, with lovely people and a great place to work! Vince, Vincent Montgomery Butcher Wantage has a very supportive business community, which has enabled Dolphin Art to thrive. Planned improvements to the town centre and an increase in the town s population will only help further. Patrick O Leary, Dolphin Art

5 Wantage has... A strong mix of owner-managed independent businesses and national names 2 hours free parking in town centre car parks An historic market town with many attractive buildings A town that celebrates its history A mix of places to eat and drink Wednesday and Saturday markets plus visiting farmers and continental markets Free town centre Wi Fi Entertainment and community facilities including a museum, night club, health clubs, an independent advice centre, civic hall, library, dentists, youth club and child care facilities Well established annual events celebrating art, crafts, history, literature, and local producers and performers A great place to visit... As a town we re proud of our history, and remembering and reflecting where we ve come from as a town remains central to the way we are today. That s symbolised by the statue of King Alfred standing at the heart of our market place, at the centre of our town s shopping area and alongside our twice-weekly market. Our Vale and Downland Museum has been nationally acclaimed as an outstanding example of community partnership and attracts about 53,000 visitors a year to its galleries interpreting the cultural heritage of the Vale of White Horse district. Wantage also offers a variety of open spaces to enjoy including Letcombe Brook, Betjeman Millennium Park, and Wantage Memorial Park. The strong local interest and appreciation of our history is reflected in the vibrant Old Wantage Facebook group where members exchange memories about buildings and places and people on a daily basis. Alfred s name will live as long as mankind shall respect the past

6 A vibrant community... Wantage has a great community spirit evidenced by the variety of events put on in and around the town throughout the year, and the number of community groups catering for every interest. Town events include a Wantage Carnival, an Autumn Food Festival, the Wantage (Not Just) Betjeman Literary Festival, a Summer Festival, Music Festival, Wantage Dickensian Evening, Mummers Play, and Wantage Beer Festival. We also have a proactive community Facebook page and a dedicated website The strength of the community spirit is well summed up in these words from Ray Collins, the inspiration behind the revival of Wantage Carnival in 2013, about the closing stages of the Winchester to Wantage charity walk that he and a group of friends completed as the carnival got underway: Photo by Howard Hill This time last Sunday we were on the final downhill to the park, all in pain, tired and exhausted. The trek had taken everything we had. Silence had replaced laughter and chat. Home was moments away; we could see it but couldn t quite believe we were so close. It danced in the distance like a mirage teasing us, beckoning us onwards. Every painful step for the past few miles was taken with a quiet determination never to give in, although your mind floods you with thoughts of stopping. We moved forward as one...ten individuals started, ten lifelong friends finished. As we entered the square the roar of the crowd and applause temporarily washed the pain away. It s a moment we will all remember for the rest of our lives. We stood by King Alfred, mission completed, we survived, we were finished, we were finished! For further information... We are delighted you are thinking about Wantage as a location for your business and are here to help answer any questions you may have. Please call the Vale of White Horse economic development team on or economic.development@southandvale.gov.uk and follow us on

7 What the experts say... With thanks to Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners the Sainsbury s and Waitrose stores provide the main convenience food store provision within Wantage. They are supported by a Costcutter and smaller units including newsagents, bakers, a butcher, off license and health food shops; comparison shopping: predominantly independent traders but also a small range of national multiple retailers. The Kings Park development has significantly improved shopping provision, including Argos, B&M Bargains, New Look; services: provides a range of services including a post office, high street banks, cafés, restaurants, takeaways and hairdressers. Strengths The centre provides a reasonable range and mix of national and independent comparison retailers. The Kings Park development provides large format stores that help attract customers to the centre. The centre has a good range and choice of non-retail services. The Sainsbury s and Waitrose stores cater for both main and top up food shopping. The Sainsbury s store acts as an important anchor attracting customers to the town centre. The centre is compact for pedestrians. Overall the shopping environment is well maintained and pleasant. For the full report, click here. Wantage in numbers... With thanks to Experian Catchment reach of 38,675 population Total retail spend of 205 million p.a. by the Wantage catchment area Of this, nearly 45 million retail spend occurs in Wantage every year Biggest categories of total spend are: clothing 8.5 million; games, toys and hobbies 5 million; furniture and floor coverings 4 million; audio visual 4 million; books and stationery 2 million; footwear 1.4 million What does Wantage still need? electrical shops, sports shops, clothing shops, childrenswear, shoe shops, toys games and hobbies, food retailers, and many more. Why don t you come and join us! A great place for you to do business... We have a mix of available retail and hospitality space for new tenants in our town centre, although the situation changes all the time. We re also working to bring some of our non-retail commercial property back into use - some of it with a retail focus to add to the space we have available for new businesses to join us. We d be very happy to talk to you about bringing your business to Wantage. Getting to Wantage town centre... Three main parking areas 2-hours free parking Regular bus services Cycle and motorbike parking in town with more being added A local town for a fastgrowing business community... The business community Wantage town centre helps to serve includes the high profile Science Vale UK - a global hot spot for enterprise and innovation in science, high technology and the application of knowledge. A near neighbour is the developing Grove Technology Park and major names in business including Williams F1 and MacDermid Autotype.

8 Working together... This project has been supported by the Government s High Street Innovation Fund. It s being driven by a strong partnership between the Vale of White Horse District Council, Wantage Town Council and Wantage & District Chamber of Commerce under the auspices of Wantage Joint Economic Forum. Wantage is a friendly, up and coming town with loyal customers who want to support their local shops. Kayleigh, New Look Supporting our existing businesses... Wantage retail, hospitality and other commercial businesses have teamed up with colleagues in neighbouring Grove to create a loyalty card scheme. It currently has more than 25 businesses involved in the initiative to strengthen the relationship between local shops and other commercial businesses and their customers. There are more details on the scheme at Our existing town centre retailers are also working together with joint initiatives like the Independent Easter Egg Hunt and Independent s Day promotions, campaigns on Twitter and Facebook and more. We have an attractive town and we re improving it all the time with a focus on enhancements from shop front improvements to planting. We re adding new signage and building on what we have to make it easier to get around our town once you re here. We re also innovating as part of our town centre project with initiatives including the piloting of a pop up shop series and a community shop. For further information... Please call the Vale of White Horse economic development team on or economic. development@southandvale.gov.uk and follow us on Photography by David Fisher Graphic Design by Seven Design Associates

9 Wantage retail catchment serves population of 38,675 Who are my key competitors? What is the available spend in Wantage? Low leakage (43.6%) to top 3 competing centres High spend on Glassware, Household Appliances, Textiles, Recording Media, Jewellery, Games and Books Who are the consumer groups in Wantage? Professional Rewards (21.9% ), Careers and Kids (13.4% ) & New Homemakers (7.4%) Where are the opportunities for new businesses? Electrical, Sports, Toys, Clothing, Childrenswear For further information... We are delighted you are thinking about Wantage as a location for your business and our team are prepared to help you with any questions you may have. Please call the Vale of White Horse economic development team on or economic. development@southandvale.gov. uk and follow us on