General Discussion

Now that the Strand development has been completed for several months, do we know how this has affected business?

Time will tell. There are at least 7 businesses for sale in Dawlish.

I see, are the seven businesses for sale because they have done so well since the redevelopment that the owners can retire early?

7 businesss for sale would suggest nothing has changed with the redevolopment. Parking is the biggest issue, I go around and around then give up and go to Sainsburys

With the risk of stating the obvious . . .

Unfortunately there are businesses in lots of towns up for sale. There is less money to go round therefore people are managing by buying less, and then there is the rise of internet shopping which is usually cheaper than the shops as the retailer doesn't have to rent/buy premises in many towns, just operate from a central warehouse.

I reckon that within the next 50 years most people will be buying nearly everything online instead of using local shops. Town centre shops will become mostly residential units with maybe one or two shops remaining which supply the essentials, milk, bread, etc., and will be 7/11's.

I don't think that the redevelopment has done much for the Dawlish in general. There may be more space for walkers but with fewer parking spaces people will always go to Sainsburys etc. No parking charges, easier access, wider range of produce. You can't blame people for doing their shopping this way.

The only businesses which might survive are some of the better cafes and restaurants.

We will just have to accept that life is changing, much like it has done for the last 50 years.

Spot on there.  If the town had 30 minutes free parking that would help a little, future can only be cafes and take aways.

It does have 30mins free parking, but the amount of spaces have been drastically reduced, and you cannot park outside Lloyd Maunders/Stokes until after 12. Also I believe disabled Blue Badge Holders can park all day if they wish

Oh thank you. 30 minutes should be long enough to nip to a shop then. They should have made the Strand car free like other towns that are busy, but I know it will never happen in Dawlish.

I know of 2 cafes down the bottom by bombay delights for sale and the card shop what else is for sale ??????

Which business types are doing well? Pubs, hairdressers, newsagents, cafes/takeaways, charity shops?

ask the Chamber of Trade/Town Manager

@Andysport

There are 2 in Queen Street, 2 in Brunswick Place, 1 Jewllers and a Hair and Beauty Salon closing on Saturday.

The Jewellers business is not for sale, just the building. The Jewellers have a secured lease until 2022 if I recall correctly. Which hair salon is closing?

Cutting Edge in Park Road is closing at 4pm on Saturday.

I just think the council have messed Dawlish up and made it harder for businesses in town in general.  It was a badly designed plan, as they had a part blank canvas by removing the wall.  It was bad enough they removed parking spaces, but they could have redesigned where the wide pavements were on the shop side!  Why would Boots need to keep a wide area, when the cafe near it has only a narrow piece where it cannot put out tables and chairs!  They could have easily moved the crossing further along to accommodate this fact.  It feels like they got the money and got so excited they just wanted to spend it as fast as they could without considering the impact it would have on the town.  So much for improving the shopping experience and helping local businesses compete against Sainsbury's and once again become an important part of peoples lives.  I tried to go in the other day to Lloyd Maunders and the bank and had to go around the block twice and still no parking, in the strand, so I went back to Sainsburys and got my meat for tea and forgot my banking.  The next day still couldn't find a parking space so I did my banking in Teignmouth on the way to an appointment!  Lots of people used to pop in to town on lunch breaks or when dropping or picking up their kids from school, but no more as if you do find a space between 10 and 4 in the daytime you feel you've won the lottery.  So we have to thank council for making things worse not better I feel!

my sentiments exactly, I have the same problem and invariably end up at Sainsburys

Thats exaclty what the three levels of local goverment want you to do, shop at Sainsbury's that is. Why do you think they wanted them here in the first place. Tidy little earners for them giving supermarkets planning permission in return for section 106 agreements, and any other sweetners they can get off them 

Nothing will change until we get a goverment that is prepared to take on the supermarket cartel and bust it wide open for exaclty what it is. In short profiteering blackmailers.

This country is heading for a giant fall and people just seem to sit back and ignore whats going on. Unless the government regain independant control of or energy supplies and food chain prices will continue to rise, shortages will start to appear and the giant supermarkets and foriegn owned companies will hold us all to ransom.

Build more houses on the land we use to farm our food

Allow more and more imigrants to take advantage of our benifit and health system

Sit back and let the money people and idea thinkers leave the country for better returns

Waste money on stupid high speed trains and let the roads fall apart

Let convicted criminals out of jail early to do exactly the same crimes again just to save a little money

All really good things happening around us every day

You have to remember all were complaining about the shops in Dawlish for one reason or the other long before Sainsburys was ever in town. Then everyone was going to either Newton or Exeter for the big shop. Mind, years ago people were not in a position to afford a car, let alone have two or three, ...now people can afford or borrow to have them, so need to drive somewhere. Spend on the petrol to save money lol.  Nobody walks anywhere. You actually get tempted to spend more money in large stoires, yes you save on items ..its all clever marketing and people have always fallen for it and happy to put as much as they can in a trolly, thats why they just get bigger..

In those days women did not have to work to supplement the family income, times have changed, most women have to shop on lunch breaks or before/after picking children up from school. Move with the times wondering, and yes you do spend more in big stores but if you are on limited time and cant find nowhere to park near the local shops, then, these stores are the convenient option

Ziggy, I maybe wrong but the 2 in Brunswick place are the shops/property for sale not the trading business, as stated the jewellers isthe property only and queen st there is again a property for sale I am unable to find any trading business for sale. The 2 cafes are for sale (as I understand) both because of bereavement. They are both being sold as going concerns. top one at £35k with £60k turnover, the bottom one being £60k with a £72k turnover, No's 22 & 23 Brunswick place was up for auction last month, empty shop queen st £55k, the card shop was about £20k, then there is a carpet retailer on Dawlish trading estate for sale at £40k business only, oh there's a small holiday complex for sale on old Teighnmouth road Dawlish £50 change from £2M, just noticed the cafe/gift shop in the railway station is for sale at £32k with £60k turnover.

Wondering, you are quite right. Shops have been closing down for years before Sainsburys came to Dawlish and the same applies to every other town in the UK and other towns and cities around the world.

And the reason Sainsburys et al are doing so well is not due to some govt conspiracy suggested by Fred Basset, it's simply that people LIKE shopping in supermarkets!!!!!!! The govt should stop wasting money on silly schemes like the Mary Portas nonsense, but at least she has now proved beyond all doubt that the HIgh Street is dead as 8 out of 10 of the places that got the funding and her ''expertise'' are now in a faster rate of decline than before her intervention.

Retail is changing, apart from clothes and food I can't remember the last time I went shopping to buy anything, much easier, MUCH cheaper, more choice and more convenient to click my mouse and get my stuff delivered.

Who wants to go back to the bad old days when shops opened when you were at work and closed when you were going home and had so little choice you settled for whatever they had in sheer frustration. Now if I go to a 'physical' shop I go in the evening at a time that is convenient for me.

I've just taken delivery of a Camera attachment, ordered online from China for £2-20 including postage, same ''branded'' item in UK High Street, £24!!!!  I've bought more than 40 items from Amazon and ebay in the last 12 months, saved a fortune and bought items that aren't available in the 'High Street', so why shop in the ''High Street'' when you have the choice of the whole world to buy from??. Return to the 'good old days' of no choice and no competition, no thanks. You can spend £10 million on The Strand but if there's nothing there people want to buy and the prices don't compete with the same items online what's the point, rather spend the money on something useful, now back to my shopping. Where did I put my mouse???

I agree with you entirely wriggler. Its much easier to do it online. And you can choose what time the delivery is made.

Shopping online is great but it isent sustainable at todays pricing structure. Soon it will be unecconomic for thousands of delivery lorries to be running around all day and night and places like Dawlish and further into Cornwall will be the first to suffer unless new roads are built to improve access.

This will be when the remaining supermarkets will be the only retailers left and consumers will then have no choice

The only saving grace would be a huge reduction in the price of Diesel fuel and theres little chance of that.

so it would seem Paul the answer to your question is, all that money spent on redevelopement has not made one iota of difference. Should have left it as it was