Andreas Rex
Banned for smiling
I went to France earlier this month and was flicking through the in-flight magazine to find the page which told me the extortionate price of the cup of tea and KitKat I was just about to purchase. About half way through I came across a full a4 page extolling the virtues of Stafford as a great place to shop. It goes like this:
Stafford
Quaint streets | Cobbled lanes | Fabulous shopping and more..
The historic County town of Stafford has shops to suit all tastes, from major high street names to unique specialist stores, from designer boutiques to Victorian style gift shops.
Stafford offers a fabulous shopping experience. Browse through markets, designer shops and picturesque side streets full of character.
Find everything you need in the Guildhall Shopping Centre then just sit back, relax and sample the café culture.
To the right of this there are 5 pictures. The first is of Crabbery Street; possibly the area of the town centre (including the precinct) with the highest percentage of empty shops. In the background are the upper levels of the Guildhall car park...delightful. In the foreground is a nice basket of flowers, which makes it all better of course. The other pictures are of the thatched fruit shop on Mill Street (which I agree is very nice to look at), Church Lane (again, a very pretty cobbled street) and finally Salter Street, which is ok...not much to shout about I don't think.
There has been much discussion on the Forum regarding the lack of independent retailers in Stafford, largely attributed to outrageous rent prices and hikes which small stores simply cannot afford. Similarly, to "browse the markets" as they put it, would uncover at least 5 or 6 empty stalls...a figure which could rise dramatically if the recently threatened rent changes go ahead.
I'm all for the promotion of Stafford as a place to visit, but whoever's painting it as a "fabulous shopping experience" is simply deluded. There is absolutely no mention of the Castle, the High House or indeed any of the things that would be of interest to tourists, especially considering BMI Baby fly into Birmingham International, meaning if you were travelling from there to Stafford by train you'd pass through both Birmingham and Wolverhampton...certainly much better if it's shopping you're after.
The one thing I think they have got spot on is in the last line: "...sit back, relax and sample the café culture."...cos there are enough of the bloody places to choose from!
Stafford
Quaint streets | Cobbled lanes | Fabulous shopping and more..
The historic County town of Stafford has shops to suit all tastes, from major high street names to unique specialist stores, from designer boutiques to Victorian style gift shops.
Stafford offers a fabulous shopping experience. Browse through markets, designer shops and picturesque side streets full of character.
Find everything you need in the Guildhall Shopping Centre then just sit back, relax and sample the café culture.
To the right of this there are 5 pictures. The first is of Crabbery Street; possibly the area of the town centre (including the precinct) with the highest percentage of empty shops. In the background are the upper levels of the Guildhall car park...delightful. In the foreground is a nice basket of flowers, which makes it all better of course. The other pictures are of the thatched fruit shop on Mill Street (which I agree is very nice to look at), Church Lane (again, a very pretty cobbled street) and finally Salter Street, which is ok...not much to shout about I don't think.
There has been much discussion on the Forum regarding the lack of independent retailers in Stafford, largely attributed to outrageous rent prices and hikes which small stores simply cannot afford. Similarly, to "browse the markets" as they put it, would uncover at least 5 or 6 empty stalls...a figure which could rise dramatically if the recently threatened rent changes go ahead.
I'm all for the promotion of Stafford as a place to visit, but whoever's painting it as a "fabulous shopping experience" is simply deluded. There is absolutely no mention of the Castle, the High House or indeed any of the things that would be of interest to tourists, especially considering BMI Baby fly into Birmingham International, meaning if you were travelling from there to Stafford by train you'd pass through both Birmingham and Wolverhampton...certainly much better if it's shopping you're after.
The one thing I think they have got spot on is in the last line: "...sit back, relax and sample the café culture."...cos there are enough of the bloody places to choose from!
