Barry’s origins are still its retailers problem

Much has been written and discussed about Barry’s problems and the difficulty Holton Road faces in attracting shoppers.

Many of the towns retail problems stem from the fact that it has three main shopping areas and two ‘local’ shopping areas which have competing with each other over the last few decades. The three main areas are Holton Road, traditionally the Heart of the town, High Street which despite tough competition from Holton Road has developed into more of a ’boutique’ shopping area and the newcomer, the out of town retail sector at the Waterfront.

The two lesser local shopping areas are Main Street and Vere Street in Cadoxton both of whom have seen a marked decline in footfall in the last few years and are struggling to maintain their identities as ’shopping’ areas. I have left out Barry Island in this instance since the shops at the ‘Triangle’ have always served a local market rather than competing with the main part of town.

Barry grew out of the three separate villages each of whom during the towns rapid development maintained a local shopping area serving the local population. Holton Road dominated because of its commercial focus, being the home of the Barry Corporation. The three villages are still fighting it out for dominance and recent history has seen market forces shaping the future.

Main Street and Vere Street are losing the battle and now only offer local convenience shopping with ancilliary services like hairdressers. Long gone are the small Banks in Vere Street and the anchor store of Main Street ‘the Handy Shop’ which attracted shoppers from further afield.

High Street has been battling for survival but has a loyal customer base and a ‘hard-core’ of independent shop owners determined to see the vision of boutique and customer focused shopping become a reality. I am sure they have carved out a niche market for themselves and are now developing a winning formula serving the environmentally conscious, ethical local shopper. It still has its challenges from the dominance and convenience of the supermarkets

Holton Road is still in a battle with the newcomer at the Waterfront having received two near fatal blows recently. The first being the closure of Dan Evans department store, a regional attraction and local stalwart of the Welsh Language and the second being the roadworks which have inconvenienced shoppers. The new improvements will have a positive effect on Holton Road, however the benefits will take time to come to fruition as shoppers slowly regain confidence and comfort.

The future is a battle between the convenience and availablity of easy parking offered by the bigger waterfront stores like Halfords and InStore against the bustle and variety of our traditional centres at High Street and Holton Road. As parking becomes more expensive in Cardiff and with the added threat of congestion charging, shopping in Barry will increasingly become a more attractive prospect. Now all we need are the large chain stores to establish stores in Barry, stores that have bypassed the town in favour of nearby Cardiff.

Penarth town centre is gaining in popularity and offering a real alternative for its citizens to the city centre of Cardiff. If the retailers of High Street and Holton Road can get their acts together and work in partnership by improving their image and appeal, they too can also offer a real alternative to the ‘only Cardiff will do’ attitude that is common amongst todays avid shoppers.

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