A number of traders have commented with concern about the decreasing no of customers visiting the village since Christmas. We have unfortunately seen the demise of two of the most recent retail additions to the village, with first the Lemon Tree and now Fashionista pulling out.

After the implementation of pay and display, the advertising package Lymm Life provided for us was superb and helped pull people back, reminding them on a regular basis that we were all open for business. But the initial interest has now started to drop and to be quite frank it is all our own fault, I did try to encourage continuation of the campaign, but some of you seemed to think it wasn’t worthwhile, or felt you could not afford £30 per month, that’s £7.50 a week, only £1.25 per day to promote the Village.

I have no doubt the roadworks has created alot of the problems, and added to this the changing of the supermarket to a convenience store has done us no favours, but in the present economic climate we need to be pro active in pulling additional trade in to the village, all the surrounding shopping areas are, they are gaining the lost shoppers.

I propose if Gary is willing at Lymm Life, of  re-introducing the advertising campaign, however there are conditions, I need 17 people to agree to contribute and would suggest payment by monthly standing order direct to Lymm Life, I cannot continue being a collector of monies, which quite honestly was a pain, also I was particularly annoyed when Mark Harrison and I had to chip in an extra £100 each to make the final payment for the last campaign.

This is a suggestion to do something pro active and encourage people back into the village centre, however if 17 of you cannot contribute it won’t happen.

Please email to confirm support for the campaign and then I will go cap in hand to Gary to get his agreement.

Lymm Life has come up with a bargain package to compliment our campaign to re-ignite Lymm village trade. Gary’s proposal is outlined below.

A brief synopsis, 

Lymm Life would produce a four page centre supplement, part funded by existing advertising and part funded by the Traders group to put out the message regarding the new car parking situation.

Page one would be based on the shopping made easier poster - but enhanced with full colour and additional design work.

Centre spread would be like May Queen centre spread but with a feature on the new car parking surrounded by individual traders adverts who have decided to support the feature.

Page four would be based on news/offers write ups e.t.c from those businesses who have contributed to the fighting fund. 100-150 word count and image if available.

These would have to be with us by the weekend to make our August edition. Lymm Life would print an additional 1,000 copies making a total print run of 6,000. 4,000 would be hand delivered to homes in the outlying areas of the village and all the "new builds" of recent years with 2,000 being distributed from our usual outlets, providing saturation coverage.

This could be done for just £500 plus VAT from the fighting fund. It may make sense to bill a VAT reg business so that element can be claimed back with the said business taking the £500 value from the fighting fund.

We could then consider replicating the feature in our Stockton Heath, Warrington, Culcheth editions over the coming months to provide wider coverage.

I would seek additional funding from our existing advertisers to help cover the additional expense and I would also make an approach to the Parish/borough councils to see if they could make a financial contribution to back the village.

The aim would be to keep the cost to the fighting fund down to £500 per magazine - providing excellent value - as a four page supplement would normally cost at least £1,000 in our village editions and £1,500 in the Warrington edition which has a much bigger print run.

I have agreed to go ahead with the above as it is a superb offer, the majority of the initial £500 would be for the door to door distribution alone. We would then continue the campaign over the following three month period appearing in the Stockton Heath, Warrington and Culcheth issues, obviously these would not be distributed door to door, but would target a much wider demographic.

This campaign would last until November issue giving an excellent opportunity to raise customer awareness before the crucial Christmas trading period. Now the painful bit, money! Because of the superb offer Lymm Life have come up with we initially will be looking for a contribution of £30 from each business to go into the 'pot', and then £30 for each of the following 2 months. For the last month we will see what is left in the fighting fund and then collect the balance required to cover the final issue.

The more businesses that contribute the less it will cost us all. We are only looking at £7.50 per week per business for 4 months. It is then up to each individual business to decide whether to run an additional advert to promote their specific outlet. 

I am really pleased the initial impact the Shoppers Car Park has had, but with this campaign we should see an increase in footfall resulting in an increase in traffic using the parking facility. If we could monitor Pepper Street, occasionally have a walk round and let me know if it reaches saturation point, I will be doing the same, then we can keep the Parish council informed. Hopefully the short stay will prevent the facility from becoming 'car bound'. 

Finally could you let Gary at Lymm Life have any interesting facts or unique selling points about your business that may be included within his editorial (not guaranteed as space will be at a premium) email him at garys@warrington-worldwide.co.uk before Sunday.

We will be calling round next week to collect the fighting fund. This has all been possible because Lymm Traders are working together. 

Regards

Philip

Hi All

We are starting to get some great publicity, word is slowly getting round about the parking situation and pay and display. Early indications suggest the Shoppers car park is working pretty well, a lot of positive customer comments.

At the moment it appears to be a little underused, this will change as shoppers get used to the fact they can come into the village and actually park!

Some of the publicity we are receiving ,

Movin Magazine feature on Lymm, including a section on Lymm Traders Read issue 3 online now featuring Lymm .

Warrington guardian story highlighting the introduction of pay and display Warrington Guardian.

Warrington worldwide story here Warrington Worldwide .

We must push on with this publicity, the group advertising we have discussed is essential, I am at present in discussion with three potential partners for the production of a professional maildrop. It is essential this is delivered door to door so we reach the NILNESH (new in lymm never ever shop here), we need to drag them in as well as inform the lost customers we are now a convenient shopping location. I have informed all advertising parties we will be organising this as a group under the Lymm Traders banner to ensure we get maximum discount for a larger spend. Could I request any available advertising funds are directed to this group initiative for the next couple of months to ensure we receive maximum exposure. I also hope to have a couple of free features running in various publications based on financial incentives.

Finally at the next Parish council meeting the area manager for Spar will be attending.

Regards

Philip

(Next Meeting Agenda here )

Since the last meeting we have seen several things happening in Lymm, some changes that should have been for the better, but as it turned out it was ‘better the devil you know’ in some instances.

I wrote to the Parish about several items that were of a concern, and I must say as usual they tried to be helpful, but in many areas they could not assist.

These were the main areas of concern (my questions highlighted) –

·         The Gas Mains / Road closure from the Grove to Pepper Street

Why is this about to begin at this time of year and in the present economic climate without any discussion with the people it will affect the most. Unless this is an absolute emergency this should be delayed until January 2010, only nine months away, when trade traditionally goes quiet. Is it possible for the council to intervene, although it is very short notice, but we only heard about it last week.

 “Our Highways department has been pressed very hard by Parish and Borough Councillors over the dissatisfaction over the timing, the impact and the repetitiveness of road works. We have already made representations over the Village Centre gas works but have been told that the Council does not have the power to force the works to be delayed. Unfortunately when the Utilities were privatised, they were protected by a range of laws and given a range of powers which seem to work to their advantage and not that of the communities they operate in. We are still in discussions with our Highways department, but it is very unlikely that the works can be delayed.”

As we are aware the above degenerated into a total farce, the works starting, then stopping due to the wrong pipework being shown on the plans and the lack of availability of replacement sett’s. We were informed by Jim Turton of Warrington Borough Council that a good supply of Sett’s were to be kept in stock for these type of eventualities, and indeed the workmen who started this total ‘cock-up’ were informed there were several pallets available.

However when they tried to source them nobody knew where they were.This is an email forwarded to myself originally sent from WBC –

“Dear All

As you are aware the Gas Boards works to renew the gas main at The Cross,Lymm were due to start on Monday this week.
It had been agreed beforehand that they would insert a new main inside the existing 12" with a launch and reception pit at either end, with the only other excavations being those to pick up the individual service connections to the properties. These works were planned to be carried out under two way lights, although a traffic order was in place to close this section of carriageway if required as a safety measure.However, after carrying out an initial excavation in the carriageway yesterday they discovered that their existing main is in fact only 10" and not the 12" as shown on their records. They are unable to downsize the main to insert in the 10" and will now need to opencut a new trench under a new road closure planned for later in the year.”

I will be writing to the Parish again and also Enterprise who were responsible for the implementation of this project requesting any works be delayed until January 2010 which is traditionally a quieter trading period.

What a comical farce this project degenerated into, bearing this in mind, I would like to quote the letterhead which accompanied the outline of the proposed works –“National Grid – The power of action” yes, very droll.

·         Spar Supermarket.

The Spar that has opened in the village is causing much consternation among customers. It does not provide the very basics required to attract trade, is not competitive and if it continues in its present form it will drive shoppers OUT of the village not attract much needed additional trade.The following rumours abound and I would like to correct my fellow traders ‘information’ or at least find out the truth of the matter – 

“.I have heard comments that locals would much prefer a Tesco Express or a Sainsbury Local. Rumour has it that Tesco’s bid for it but “they” (the council?) would not allow it, also that the Spar is on a short lease & Tesco may take over. I have no concrete facts, sorry, would it be worth asking the council what is really happening. A good supermarket is vital to bring people into the village in the first place.”

"Concerning SPAR, we can understand your concern. Unfortunately, neither the Parish Council nor the Borough Council can control who trades where. Planning control only extends to the nature of the use of premises. The Office of Fair Trading, a central government agency, regulates competition between supermarkets, and they may have intervened to prevent the Coop from getting a third store in Lymm. The Council would have had no say in who manages the store. However you may want to contact the Warrington Customer Contact Centre on 443322 and ask to speak to someone in Trading Standards to see if they know anything else about the way the competition laws might have been applied. I am almost certain it had nothing to do with either Council."

The above outlines the problems that have been created by this change of store, and also how the Parish had no say on the matter. I personally never felt Somerfield did a particularly stunning job, they were not competitive, with a very annoying pricing structure with the Stockton Heath store carrying the same brands considerably cheaper, and was pleased when the Co-op took over, but now after seeing the dire consequence of the enforced change to Spar I have to admit it was definitely ‘Better the Devil you know’.

Not sure what we can do about Spar, perhaps something for the next agenda?, however perhaps it will start to sink in with them how poorly this store has been received, with the reduction in customers, and also the new nickname being used by the locals –

They now call it SPARCE !

·         Vandalism

The vandalism within the village centre is escalating again. At present it is mainly items being thrown into the Dingle river next to the Bakery but as it is getting worse it will grow into broken windows and violence. PCSO’s need to be within the village centre at pub closing times, as it is drunken youths who are the problem.

I would also request a letter from the council asking for stricter control within the premises, i.e. not continuing serving people when they are already totally inebriated, and some form of preventative action taken to make the couple of premises who fail to restrict these individuals alcohol intake adhere to stricter controls.

"Unfortunately almost none of these are matters over which the Parish Council has any control, except that we do get regular briefings from the PCSOs and can ask for the PCSOs to be deployed as you suggest. However there is no reason why the traders’ group shouldn’t approach the South Warrington Neighbourhood Policing Unit directly, Inspector Sarah Edgar is in charge and you can contact them directly by email at: warrington.south.cat@cheshire.pnn.police.uk or by phone on 0845 6372. I will forward your comments to her. They also work with Warrington Borough Council’s licensing department to deal with complaints about licensed premises. It is an offence to serve someone who is already drunk in a pub, and this should be enforced. If you let the Police know they will know what their arrangements are."

However after the Parish contacting the above this email was received from a Police representative

“ Many thanks for your info. We do try to spend as much time in the village centre as possible, however we have to spread ourselves thinly, especially now the lighter evenings are upon us, checking the parks, High school grounds, cricket club etc (all these have experienced vandalism). Unfortunately, the youth element seems to take the brunt of the blame, when it is usually adults that have had too much to drink that are responsible.

Can you pass on the importance of calling us if anybody sees anything - 0845 458 0000 or 999 if there is threat to life or property.”

The above does little to give me confidence, it just proves how thinly the Police resources are spread. I firmly believe we need to take our own preventative measures to stop both vandalism and theft increasing due to lack of Police presence.Twice last week individuals attempted to force entry into our premises, the alarm system warning us.I have now organised CCTV to be installed externally, recording 24/7 the close proximity of our premises, I will then be able to help the Police secure convictions of the unruly or criminal fraternity.I would encourage all businesses to do the same, it is not frighteningly expensive, we would then have a network coverage making the village centre an unattractive option for the individuals we have mentioned.

If you need any information or help on the above then give me a ring on 01925 753669.

As you can see from the above, quite a bit has gone on since we last met, next Monday 11^th May is the next meeting, 6pm Upstairs room, Spread Eagle.

Please be there if you can.

Philip

To say this has proved to be a bone of contention amongst the different traders within the village centre would be an understatement.

The only thing I dont understand is when the discussions were taking place why weren't the concerns raised at the meetings. We could have worked together and come up with a compromise that would best suit all parties. Doing this before the consultation took place would have shortened the period before implementation of the finalised scheme, and also seen everybody working together.

A changed scheme looks likely to be implemented fairly soon, but personally I dont see how this will tackle the car sharing problems or reduce the amount of unnecessary long stay parkers.

I do hope Davies Way facility is redesigned to allow more spaces, it has so much potential which is not being utilised fully at the moment.

I would ask everyone to try to work together and at least give a little consideration to the plight of others. Only considering ones own needs is unacceptable, we all want Lymm to thrive, it will benefit everybody concerned, to ensure this happens we are all going to have to make some slight adjustments.

Do you believe we should make some small sacrifice to help our fellow businesses or not ?

It seems everyday now another story comes out about 'credit crunch Britain', I personally feel it is doing the country no favours, it is whipping up fear in the consumer and making them spend less, a vicious circle which the government is finding difficult to break.

The latest news from the British Chamber of Commerce states the economic situation as "Frightening, ominous and truly awful", not exactly inspiring a positive outlook.

With the news 50 small businesses a day! are going bust, we need to be aware of what options and help is out there. We need to realise the businesses that are struggling are in the main reliant on financing from the banks for their day to day trading, and with their customers taking extended credit, this further exasperates the problem. The banks have stopped providing the lines of credit they provided in the past, basically throttling the company.

A plan to guarantee up to £20bn of loans to small businesses to help them survive the economic downturn is set to be unveiled later.

It is likely that in return for a fee, the state will in effect insure banks against firms defaulting on repayments.

To find more help from Business Link click here.

Business Link are a really useful government body, offering real help for all businesses, they also have a quick questionnaire to ascertain whether your company would qualify for the above mentioned loans.

I include below a cut and paste from the Federation of Small Businesses, which I felt was a really useful article, I found the section about Crime against Business particularly insightful, something that is affecting Lymm all too often.

Link to the FSB

Five steps to survival

As small businesses battle to survive the economic downturn, Andrew Moody reports on five key policy priorities highlighted by the FSB as a result of its major regular report into the opinions of UK business owners

Ian O'Donnell believes the Government needs to provide better support for small firms to help them survive the downturn. The managing director of two businesses in Meriden in the West Midlands, Realpoint Graphic Design and Realpoint Business Technology, says Business Link – the Government's business support network – is reasonably effective in providing help to startup businesses. But, he argues, it fails to support established businesses.

‘They are good at pointing you in the right direction when you don't know a lot. But when you are an established business looking to grow, you are likely to be faced with a business adviser who knows less than you do,' he says. ‘If the Government want to get businesses through the downturn it should target help at the businesses that want to grow.'

The whole subject of business support and finance is one of five policy areas highlighted in the FSB's 2008 Putting the Economy Back on Track report, the largest barometer of small business opinion in the UK. The other key areas are skills and training; transport; environment and information and communication technology; tackling crime against business; and allowing SME owners to achieve a work-life balance. Based on the report, the FSB has come up with a series of policy recommendations in each of these areas.

John Walker, the FSB's national policy chairman, says now is the time that small businesses most need help in order to get through the current downturn.

‘The British economy is going through difficult times and small firms are feeling the downturn. Over the past few months, the FSB has managed to put small business issues right at the top of the Government's agenda.

‘Putting the Economy Back on Track highlights where help should be targeted most. Small businesses need available and affordable credit and they also need government-funded business support aimed at where the real needs are.

‘Support is required in other key areas. This includes investment in skills and training, infrastructure, tackling crime against business and an end to over-burdensome regulation which results in many small business owners having to work longer hours than they would otherwise need to.'

Step 1: - Business support and finance

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

Business Link and other business support services around the UK need to improve their act if they are to provide the necessary help to small businesses during the downturn.

Just over a quarter (27.5 per cent) of respondents in the survey said they used government-funded business support such as Business Link, much of which was advice for start-ups.

It also showed that 50 per cent of small businesses were vulnerable to the current credit squeeze in that they were heavily dependant on banks for funding. Some 29.4 per cent relied on a bank overdraft and 14.4 per cent on a secured bank loan.

The FSB believes a series of measures are now vital to help businesses through the current economic situation. It wants the Government to set up a £1 billion Small Business Survival Fund to take over from the Small Firms Loan Guarantee scheme to distribute funds from the European Investment Bank. This would be a stop-gap measure for small businesses to access finance over the next six months. Late payment legislation should also be strengthened so that firms which try and regularly pay late can be named and shamed.

The FSB also wants to see major improvements in government-funded business support such as Business Link. It wants them staffed by advisers with real expertise.

‘They should not be focused on start-ups as they are now, but offer more help to established businesses which need support to grow their businesses at key stages of their development,' says Ash Farag, the FSB's financial affairs chairman.

David Caro runs Birmingham-based Qualplast, which makes flock-coated interiors for vehicle glove departments. The 57-year-old, a veteran of two major recessions, says banks need to be held to account.

‘Banks should not be allowed to get away with increasing overdraft rates when they have already agreed terms with a business. Businesses need to know where they stand.'

He also argues that business support agencies should be staffed by people who have been through the mill before. ‘The best people to give advice on how to get through a downturn are those with experience of previous downturns, who are able to offer considered advice.'

Step 2: - Transport, environment and ICT

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

Well it's been a while since my last blog, but Christmas is such a manic time!.

We are now into 2009 and if you listen to news reports it is going to be a tough year.

We have seen the collapse of several major retail chains at the end of 2008 and it begs the question why, and what can we learn from their demise.

This week bed retailer Sleep Depot and toy shop Toyzone became the latest high street victims of the downturn and Allders department stores, boasting 45 branches, with a flagship on Oxford Street, and a turnover last year of more than 600 million is to go into receivership. Waterford Wedgewood is going into administration also Woolworths highly publicised collapse, then theres DFS, Adams childrens clothing, 111 stores closed, another 160 hanging by a thread, Manchester retailer Passion for Perfume has gone into administration with the loss of 194 jobs. Officers Club, Whittard of Chelsea had 130 stores but collapsed, there are several more failed and apparently perhaps another 12 could fail in the not too distant future, scary.

America have it worse than us,

General Motors, the largest car maker in the US, which celebrated its 100th anniversary this year, said it will be bankrupt within months unless it gets government money to tide it over during the biggest economic crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

The company has called off merger talks with its smaller rival Chrysler in order to concentrate on more urgent internal cost-cutting and on lobbying for a rescue from the US government.

With sales slumping across the world, GM's chief executive, Rick Wagoner, said it had burnt through $6.9bn (£4.4bn)! in the three months to the end of September and had drawn on the last of its credit lines from its banks. With just $16.2bn left in the bank, and about $12bn of that needed as a cushion to fund its day-to-day operations, a day of reckoning is now within sight.

Several banks have failed , and their mortgage market basically collapsed.

So what can we do to avoid the same fate?.

Tackle the basics, cut costs, reduce overheads, maximise sales and avoid borrowing. Easily said, harder to do. It is likely as sales drop you will be tempted to borrow to survive. This is a rocky road, be realistic, dont throw good money after bad. The strong will survive, it is likely some will fail.

It is now time Lymm came together and put up a united front, a stronger Lymm will attract more shoppers, hopefully we will have somewhere for them to park, but we need additional must have retail outlets. How about some diversity, if your struggling why not try something different, something people need on a daily basis that we dont have in Lymm at the moment. I know many of you wont want to do that, it's just a thought, surely thats better than going bust with massive debts.

Good luck everyone, stay strong and think about working together.

I have supplied as many outlets in the village with A2 consultation documents as possible, please display them and sell the idea to all your customers.

It is of the utmost importance, now that the Parish and Borough are supporting this initiative, to make sure everybody, your customers and don't forget your staff, understands what we are trying to achieve and the reason why a change in the parking situation is required. Do not take it for granted everybody understands the total car park blockage we often have during the day. As a high street retailer sales should be your strong point, your going to need your best sales patter to win the majority over!.

Points in favour.

• Easy to park, always available spaces
• Avoid the traffic wardens, they will now have an alternative to a ticket, a parking space!
• No more driving around and then having to go elsewhere
• Busier centre able to offer more choice
• Will attract more retail outlets, again offering more choice.

Also please do write in favour of the Pay and Display scheme, email to parkingconsultation@warrington.gov.uk In the subject line place the title ' Lymm Pay and Display', you can be sure the people who dont want it will be writing in, there will be quite a few out of village businesses who would not like to see this scheme go ahead.
The Heatley Mere development and the Co-Op on the top road are two that spring to mind immediately, these both benefit at the moment from the lack of parking facilities in the village centre, they will lose out and we will benefit when this scheme comes into force.

Lets make sure this goes through without complication.

We need to work together.

Now is the time for action.

Not too long ago Lymm Dickensian didn't happen. After it was introduced it quickly became a wonderful family day, bringing people in to our village from far and wide, and also introducing the new Lymmites to the beauty and convenience that we have right in the centre of Lymm.

The streets throng to the sound of barrel organs and fairground rides, the smells of baked potatoes, hot soup and mince pies fill the air. The enduring the sound of children’s laughter, smiling faces mill about and Peter Powell, our town crier, is seen and especially heard! bringing a wonderful, old fashioned Christmassy feel of times past for at least one day of the year. We can't turn back time, but it almost feels like we've gone back a couple of hundred years on this day.

Shops are packed, pubs heave under the strain of additional custom, charities bring in much needed funds, thanks to the hard work of their volunteers, much is achieved during this one day.

This happens thanks to the hard work of Mike Evans and Rotary. Mike pulls everything together, and there’s a lot to be done. So why don't we help him a bit more folks?

Every year Mike finds it a struggle to bring in the funds required to stage this event, some businesses in Lymm contribute nothing at all, maybe because they don’t directly benefit from the day, for example Solicitors, Hairdressers, Estate Agents and I understand their point in a way. However it is for charity, it puts Lymm on the map so all benefit in the long run from this event and just a £25 donation from all these village businesses would make Mikes life much easier and ensure the festivities continue for years to come, I know about the credit crunch but 25 quid wont break the bank will it?

Some, in fact most retailers benefit directly from the day, how much do you contribute in relation to this increased turnover, yes to many this will include increased overheads, but do you give back some of the extra you bring in, some from multiple outlets, if the answers no, then why not?

Some pubs and shops don’t contribute at all and I honestly cannot understand that, Christmas, bah, humbug. Miserable so and so's ! 

It’s non of my business what you do with your money I know, let your conscience help make your decision, but please don’t make Mikes work harder than it already is.

As Mike says “We don't expect much, £25/£50 would help a lot. Any donation could be dropped off at Laura's choice alternatively contact me through the web http://www.lymmdickensian.com/index.html  or phone 75 5765"

So lets make Mikes job easier and let’s hope for good weather for all concerned. 

Phil

Agree or not? Click on the comment button below this blog and let’s hear what you have to say.

I am pleased to also announce the Rotary Santa Float will be putting in an appearance on Thursday nights in December, driving slowly through the village, so let's capture that family audience, again tell all your customers, let’s get the village buzzing. Thanks to Mike Evans for helping to organise that.

This truly is Lymm Traders working together for a better future