Shoppers and traders express their views on the proposed closure of Concord Market, Sedgley.

Express & Star

Transcript

00:00Good morning, we're in the centre of Sedgley where the Concord market's just over the road.

00:08The owners have announced it's going to close in January the 12th after nearly 50 years

00:13of trading. We're going to be speaking to traders and some shoppers to see what they

00:19think of the news. The owners haven't said why, they've said it's down to a number of

00:23factors. They've apologised but the shop will close on January the 11th. So let's go and

00:29find out more. I use it regularly, every time it's open, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Thursdays,

00:37Fridays, Saturdays. How long have you used it? Oh, ever since it's been open basically.

00:41Right, because that's nearly 50 years isn't it? Yeah, and it used to be bigger than this

00:45obviously. Yeah, do you live in Sedgley? Yes, I live on the north bank. What do you think

00:50about the shopping generally in Sedgley? Do you do all your shopping in Sedgley? Mainly

00:56yes, mainly. Do you ever go into Wolverhampton? I just have a walk up, I go into Wolverhampton

01:00occasionally, maybe once every fortnight. But basically it's here, it's up here. You

01:05find most of the stuff that you need. I just have a walk up, I can walk up here and I can

01:09use the facilities. Yeah, they're friendly? I use the bank, I use the bank there, that's

01:14shut. Yeah, so I guess you'll miss the stallholders as well, friendly atmosphere. Yes, definitely,

01:22I'm just going to the butchers round the corner now. I'm really sad because we've built

01:27up a good business and we've got to know all our customers and it's been great, I love

01:33the market, so it's just very sad. And although you've been running this stall for 10 years,

01:39you've been on the market as it were for 13, so that's a few years isn't it? Yeah. So what

01:46is it you like about market trading? I just love all the atmosphere, the people coming

01:51in, the chatting, and you just have a laugh and it's lovely, lots of characters, lovely.

01:56Are you going to miss something? You must have made quite a few friends here. Oh yes,

02:00yeah, and all the stallholders that's come and gone. Yeah, but you're going to try and

02:04stay in Sedgley and looking for another stall or shop? Yes, definitely, I'll try my hardest.

02:09Well in here it's good, but I mean, shopping down the bowling, down here, it's a waste

02:14of time. We've got now florists, we've got now butchers, we've got nothing. That's all

02:17we've got here, that's what we have to rely on. Now if this is closing, we've got nothing,

02:22it's either Asda or Aldi now, if this closes. Because I mean, the customers in here, the

02:30people that use the card shop here, they're fantastic people, the same as the butcher.

02:35They've all been good, they're as good as gold, they know you. And they help you. But

02:41somebody else to get it in you now, they come in, they think, I ain't got time for her,

02:45she's bloody stupid. Yeah. You know what I mean? What are you looking for this morning

02:50in your shopping, are you doing any of your Christmas shopping here? No, I've just got

02:53to get my cards off the card shop, because they're marvellous. They're marvellous here.

02:57Popular stall, isn't it? Popular stall, and the clothes, when he sells the socks and stuff,

03:04they're good. So what are you going to do, say in January, when you come and do your

03:07New Year's shopping? That's a good thing, I'll do. I'll have to go to the card shop

03:11down there, to get the cards, if they're closed. You know, there'll be nobody in here to tell

03:14you about the cards, because these are good in here. They help you. I mean, I come up

03:19here, and I tell them what I need, and they go round and sort for me what I want. And

03:23I don't have to go rummaging through the card shop. I tell them what I want, and they get

03:27some for me. That's the people you've got in here. You know what I mean? Customer service.

03:33People that do help you. Yeah. Okay. When you get somebody that can help, they won't

03:37say, I want to know, they'll just say, I'll push you to one side, or I'll just say, push

03:41you to one side, I don't care. But if this goes, I think I've got nothing. I mean, we

03:46used to have a grocery store, we've got nothing. Well, the market for the last few years, there's

03:49been nothing really in it. I mean, if you look for yourself now, a lot of the stalls

03:54are empty. There's a bread stall, the card stall, the fruit and veg stall, and the butchers,

04:01that's about it, really. I mean, years ago, when I was younger, every stall was taken.

04:07But now, over the last few years, it's just got less and less and less and less.

04:11Yeah. Because you told us you lived in Sedgley before, lived elsewhere, and then came back to

04:16Sedgley for the last eight years. Do you do most of your shopping here in the town? We do now, yeah.

04:21Yeah. Yeah. And what do you think of it generally? Is this your wife over here? That's my wife.

04:26Yeah. She was saying a lot of the shops have closed, or essential. I mean, you haven't

04:33actually got a butcher's in the main high street. Right. You haven't got a greengrocer's in the

04:36main high street. All the banks have shut. I mean, basically, it's all hairdressers,

04:42barbers, things like that. Yeah. Yeah. So, do you think there's much future for shopping in Sedgley?

04:48Well, at the moment, I'd say you've got, obviously, you've got the two

04:52stores, like Asda in Iceland, and now Aldi. Yeah. A lot of the people would be using those,

05:03rather than the main streets. Because, like I said, no butchers, no fruit and veg.

05:10And, I mean, a lot of people have said here this morning about the atmosphere here,

05:14the friendly welcome you get at the different stalls, the card stall in particular has been

05:19mentioned. Yes. I mean, you do get that. I mean, I come here on a Saturday to get the cobs and

05:25bread. Yeah. On a Saturday morning. But, like I say, everybody's very friendly. But, as you've

05:32walked about, there's not a lot in here, really. So, we've heard from plenty of people this morning

05:38who've talked about the community feel, the friendly welcome they get in the Concord market.

05:44So, they say you don't always get it on the high street or in big stores. So,

05:51we'll wish them all the best for Christmas and all the stall holders. Let's hope they get fixed up

05:56in new shops.

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