Having read the about the latest Wrexham Council meeting in which they debated the on-going issues with the towns historic markets, and came up with the really original thought that the public were partially to blame, with the ancient trope ‘Use it or lose it’ used as a get out for what on the surface looks like a lack of understanding of the identity of the town, and what a market actually is.
Historically, Wrexham was a strong market trading town, with various markets, both travelling and permanent, filling the town with shoppers on most days of the week, which also resulted in thriving shops and retail outlets. Over the years, both by design and societal change, this identity has eroded away, leaving us with the rotting skeleton of what once was. That isn’t to say there aren’t outliers in the town, businesses that have bucked the trend, providing ‘what people want’, hospitality, hair cuts(!) and vapes but the variety and depth of shopping fare has basically disappeared apart from small, soon gone valiant attempts to provide relief from the norm.
Modern shopping habits have also changed, making the retail landscape completely different from even the recent past, with supermarkets now catering for every need, but outside of the town centre, giving the majority of the towns population no need to actually visit the town. Also, you have internet shopping which again removes the need for ‘wasting time’ driving down congested and pot holed roads, finding places to park, and either paying a visitors tax (car park charge) or having to go to war with over zealous parking companies who will ‘fine’ drivers for even the most simple of misdemeanours. I won’t dig in to the many mistakes made during the redevelopment and renovations in the town centre, but it is quite obvious that there has been a lack of in depth planning and understanding of Wrexham, its people, and business dynamics. We can’t bring back the past, that is patently obvious, but we can change the future. So how do we at least attempt to change the apparent downward spiral that isn’t just papering over the cracks?
A simple solution to getting markets working again would be to hold them on a Saturday, or even a Sunday, and ban the supermarkets from being open. You only have to look at the success local car boot sales have to see that people who want to browse around for their shopping do it on a weekend. So why not set up a car boot sale in Wrexham town centre on a weekend, accompanied by a standard street market, and encourage stall owners in the Butchers, General and Ty Pawb to open? Wednesday could be a ‘closed for business’ day to compensate staff and stall\ shop owners with time off, and allow the town centre maintainance crews time to work on the infrastructure. You don’t need to pay consultants ridiculous fees to see what is in front of your eyes. In this day and age, shopping habits have changed to survival techniques to cope with ever rising bills, usually now everyone works in a household, so its obvious they won’t be around to spend money in the week.
One thing is certain, if we want the town to survive, there needs to be change. This change is by far more important that ‘projects’ such as the City Of Culture bid, and even the much vaunted Gateway Project on Mold Road. To quote The Specials;
“Do you remember the good old days
Before the ghost town?
We danced and sang and the music played
In a boomtown”
