Use em or loose em

We don't really like writing pessimistic posts, usually we like to just talk about all that is good and positive about the South, but we had an interesting but slightly depressing walk around Shawlands and Govanhill yesterday which is worth mentioning. Our depression was partly due to the down pouring rain but mainly as a result of the number of shops that we noticed that have closed down.

If we had carried out the same walk six months ago we would have passed a craft shop, a book shop, a knitting shop, a handbag shop and a wedding hat shop to name but a few but sadly they now all stand empty.


The ever increasing of rates combined with a change in the shopping habits of locals is having a hugely detrimental effect on the unique shops of our high streets.
For example - a number of shops in Shawlands have the following opening hours, 9-5 mon - fri, 9-1 sat and closed on Sundays. A large percentage of Shawlands residents however work outwith the area and are therefore only in Shawlands on weekends or evenings after 6pm.

This means that the shops and the shoppers only coincide on Saturday mornings, which is fair enough if you are just buying a newspaper, a loaf of bread, or having a browse in the Charity shops but no good if you are after a hammer, nails, a pair of football boots, a wedding hat or the latest novel. These are things that if you need them, you're not going to wait all week to get. If you need them and you can buy them in the city or one of the late night shopping centres, you're probably just going to go get them elsewhere.

(Glasgow Model Shop Cathcart Road - one of the great specialist shops still open in the South but not Sundays as seen above)

With the new Silverburn Centre opening in Pollok very soon, with its late opening, free parking and covered mall, our high streets are going to find it increasingly hard to compete. But a strong, vibrant, mixed high street is one of the things that helps to make an area work, helps make it feel safe, useful and a pleasant place to be, and helps create community spirit. It also helps attract more people to the area to spend their money in the bars, cafes and restaurants which then pays the rates and allows money to improve the paving, lighting and street furniture.

There needs to be a strategic rethink of the Southsides, mini shopping centres, some suggestions, please post your comments, alternatives:

• Shawlands Arcade needs to be completly redesigned to make it attractive to shoppers and to give a bit of life to that stretch of Kilmarnock Road. (We've conacted the centres owners to find out their plans, but have had no responce, anyone any ideas what the plans are?)


• Need more specialist Shops to attract tourists, shoppers from elsewhere.


• Shops need to change opening hours. Maybe opening at 10am until 7pm.


• Shop Community meetings for the shop holders to meet, and plan how to work together to improve things.


• Govanhill should be promoted as an area of ethnic shops - like the way Brick Lane is, in London.


• Other areas should try to specialise or at least promote different specialities ie Shawlands could promote small individual fashion stores from new designers.


• Better signage and maps connecting the Southside areas to the City Centre and Westend. (From speaking to a number of friends from these areas, they don't acutally know the southside exists or how to get there!!)

We've always had a great array of individual shops in the Southside but as more competition rises up around them, they are going to continue to struggle and decline if they don't get help. G41 have set up a petition about the future of Shawlands click here to add you name.

If we don't use them we're going to lose them.

We thought it would be interesting to generate a list of specialist shops within the Southside area so if you know of a great little shop in the Southside that saves you having to go into the City centre then let us know.