Currys - Closed down since March
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Campaign for Pound Shop on Currys Site
By Bernard Claptrap, June 2005
November 2004
It's common knowledge that Currys in Northenden has been closed for 3 months, having been forced out of business following several robberies. If this wasn't bad enough in itself, a further debate has been sparked surrounding the fact that the village now has yet another shop unit standing empty. Whilst the empty shop unit situation is now not as bad as it once was, the planners have some tough decisions to make when granting planning permission for proposed shops in the village. It's no secret that amongst the companies interested in the Currys building is a fast food chain. Northenden however, is now percieved as having too many takeaways, cafes and bars.
"Too many shutters up": Local Councillor
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At a recent meeting of the Civic Society, a comment was made about the refusal of permission to turn the curtain shop on Palatine Rd into another cafe. One of our local councillors pointed out that it may be preferable to open another bar than to return to the trend of having shop units empty and boarded up. Due to spiralling crime in the area however, it is the norm for shop units which are occupied to utilise heavy shutters outside of shop hours, contributing to the "ghost town" image - another popular criticism levelled at Northenen by snooty-nosed residents of Didsbury and the like.
Here's a potted history of Currys and some background on the closure.
The Northenden branch of Currys was established in the early 1990's, capitalising on a gap left in the market by the closure of Comet and the Co-op. Since then, trade has been steady if unremarkable. Rather tellingly however, Curry's was amongst the longest established traders in Northenden, due to a shocklingly high turnover of businesses within the village.
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A spate of robberies has taken place over recent years and ultimately forced the store to start closing early at weekends in the run-up to its closure in March. At that time, Curry's head office did not reply to our inquiries over the robbery, and local staff appeared to have been warned about speaking to the media. In an unprecedented step, it appears that neighbouring businesses in the village have been urged not to speak to the media either. We spoke to a number of workers from shops in Northenden including some who had worked in Curry's and Comet's in the past. Security consultant Sivanendra Selvanayagam, who refused to be named, said: My boss has asked me not to comment about the closure of [Curry's] or about any of the staff. I know that some of the staff had been looking for other jobs because they were getting increasingly reluctant to come to work through fear of being injured or worse, in a robbery. First of all everyone tried to reassure people and the shop was closing early during the times when robberies were thought to be a risk, e.g. late in the day and at the weekends. I don't think anyone felt any safer and eventually it just closed.
Local shop managers who were prepared to talk to us made comments such as: "Anyone interested in opening a consumer goods outlet in Northenden will think twice after this. Northenden is turning into a no-go zone. The police cannot control crime in the area." Another manager told us "It won't be long before Northenden itself is closed down. You will have to go to White City". A third told us to "stick your website up your a*se". Well, we'll give that some thought, but we're happy with the blue colour scheme for now.
So, could anything else have been done? One of Northenden's longest-standing electrical retailers has been subject to various attempted robberies over the years and has refused to give in to crime, continuously updating security all the time. Amongst other measures, added to the defences are reinforced walls and a solid metal roof. We asked Mr Selvanayagam for his opinion on whether Curry's could have adopted similar measures to ward off burglars. He said "You listen mate. Currys is a completely different kettle of fish from that bloke. You don't mess with him. He is the king of Northenden shopkeepers. He's lasted years here. He is rock hard."
You will be pleased to know that the fate of the Currys site is of interest to local residents who are concerned about the number of closed shop units and takeaways. It has been remarked that the land could be amalgamated with the Mobil land next door and increase the number of flats that it is possible to build. Predicting that this land will eventually play host to luxury flats is a bit... well, predictable. So, we collared a load of students waiting for the bus opposite the site and asked them what they would like to see on the site. They suggested:
- A pub - well who would have guessed.
- A huge Indian restaurant - Called Currys Raj.
- Another Tesco's - but this one sells taramasalata (it is closer to Didsbury after all).
- A lap dancing club.
- A Turkish restaurant.
- A Chinese restaurant.
- A parade of shops including 3 takeaways and a 24 hour off-license.
Pound Shop: The way forward
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Standing in the bus queue at the time was Wayne Campbell, who is well known amongst Northenden shopkeepers and whose family have patronised our facilities for years. He is in favour of a co-ordinated campaign for sensible and forward-thinking use of the land, with an eye to regenerating the village for the future and stimulating economic growth, with huge potential returns to the community by means of increased employment. Wayne believes that the only way forward for this site, is to open a pound shop.
His argument seems solid:
Northenden has only one pound shop, but it's not as big as one on the Curry's site would be. More people would be able to fit in the shop and buy things. The nearest pound shop apart from this, is Sale Circle - but it is understood that some items for more than a pound are available here. Civic Centre in Wythenshawe has at least 5 pound shops. Local residents think they are great, with Wayne telling us that he visits Civic Centre's pound shops regularly for life's essentials: "I got all my Christmas shopping done for under £10." Wayne also told us "every time a new shop opens, it can be up to a year before I'm barred for shoplifting".
Wayne Campbell - A modern Northenden entrepreneur
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Pound Shop - perhaps the only way forward for Curry's site
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Turning Currys into a pound shop could be exactly what Northenden needs to bring the place upmarket again - making good use of the site without turning it into a takeaway. But let's not forget to dig it all up first and look for roman remains! We might get a lottery grant too...