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The 'how are they still in business' thread.

The last Smith's Greengrocers in Hamlet Court Road looks to have finished trading with shop being gutted. I hope it is a refurb but doubt that as H C Rd is a desert for anything much apart from convenience and charity shops.
There used to be half a dozen Smith's around the town. My first Saturday job was in the very busy Southchurch Road shop near Belle Vue Road circa 1974.
Stacey Smith (RIP), daughter of owning,then, family, was an absolute stunner and lived Hobleythick Lane with her parents before the big modeling jobs and marrying Paul Young.
I used Smith's once a week but I know the manager, Leon(?), arsenal supporter, left suddenly to go back to building trade a few months ago and finding a trusted, knowledgeable, hard worker to run the shop can't be easy.
 
No surprise about the High Street is it? If a company such as White Stuff, FatFace etc wanted to open a shop here abouts I would expect Leigh Broadway or Road to be a better location.
 
Africa crafts shop - Queens Road - I have never seen anyone enter or leave this place in over 30 years. Maybe they cashed in on leather Africa pendants in the late 80s/early 90s?
That shop has been there since 72 ( first time i noticed it ) or even before then. Funnily enough i walked past it a couple of weeks ago, it was shrouded in semi darkness, & as you say, there was no-one inside!.
To cover, rent, electric, wages etc i'd est the minimum daily takings need to be around £300 (?), doubt they take anything like that amount?.
 
Ditto with The Royals. It's a Ghost town.
To be honest one of the two should be pulled down and I think it should be the Royals. Im convinced you could revitalise the High Street by covering it almost as far as the railway bridge and then look to redevelop almost anything south of that.
 
No surprise about the High Street is it? If a company such as White Stuff, FatFace etc wanted to open a shop here abouts I would expect Leigh Broadway or Road to be a better location.
The Leigh mafia, who own half the shops in the Broadway and also sit on the council won’t allow that!!
 
Agree they should knock the Royals down, it’s an eyesore! There’s so much they could do to improve the High St and make it more appealing, that part especially. Just think, day trippers and tourists arriving into Southend Central and walking to the pier/seafront, hardly the nicest walk or the best advert for the place. They could definitely tidy that up for starters. It was only when I took that walk with people outside the area I thought “what a shame”.. dunno what they thought.
 
Africa Crafts Shop on Quens Road closed until further notice.

I remember thinking that they would never last back in 1989 as I purchased a Soul II Sould inspired Africa leather pendant.
 
Africa Crafts Shop on Quens Road closed until further notice.

I remember thinking that they would never last back in 1989 as I purchased a Soul II Sould inspired Africa leather pendant.
Always an odd one, I have looked in window a few times but never known it to be actually open.
 
The sweet shop in the High Street opposite the Royals and Boots, never seen anyone in there either. I can only presume it has a large weekend day tripper pull?
 
Africa Crafts Shop on Quens Road closed until further notice.

I remember thinking that they would never last back in 1989 as I purchased a Soul II Sould inspired Africa leather pendant.

thats a shame, we were in there last year buying some stuff for my youngest. The owner had already halved the inside space and was getting on in years, so not a complete shock.
 
The sweet shop in the High Street opposite the Royals and Boots, never seen anyone in there either. I can only presume it has a large weekend day tripper pull?

Had to say it seemed quite busy when I was in there about a month ago. My girlfriend thought it was amazing having never witnessed "Pick N Mix" before.
 
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