Residents across Rotherham are being encouraged to celebrate their local and independent shops and businesses throughout July as Independent Retailer Month gets underway.
For many high streets across the borough, independent retailers offer essential services and goods to all residents, including fresh fruit and veg, meat, flowers, hair and beauty services, pet food and much more.
This includes cafes such as Aroma Coffee Shop in Dinnington which offers a range of cakes and drinks with locally sources ingredients. Along with their varied menu, they also host a range of evening events such as Psychic suppers.
Owner of Aroma Coffee Shop, Sally Hill, said: “We sell delicious homemade cakes and food and serve amazing coffee supplied by local Heavenly Coffee Company. We have a very varied menu and are also fully licensed.
“If people don’t shop local, we will lose so many amazing local businesses such as Aroma. I have so many customers who use my shop as a social hub, they feel loved, safe and are able to meet with friends, make friends with the added bonus of enjoying delicious food and drink. I always encourage everyone to visit the other local businesses to meet people and spend time and money locally.”
As well as local coffee shops and cafes, there are hundreds of independent and family run shops across Rotherham the borough like Boulton Family Butchers in St John’s Green, Kimberworth Park.
This family run butchers offers a range of fresh, locally sourced meat including their range of oven and air fryer ready products, and dry aged beef – one of the only places in Rotherham to offer this speciality.
Shop owner, Hayley Boulton, said: “All our suppliers are local so we can keep the money local and means we can support British farmers too. For every customer we have, it helps to pay for our mortgage, our family rather than some unknown person in an unknown place. It puts back into the local community, and we care more about our customers. Because we care, our customers get a much better quality of produce and we give the best service possible.
“We get customers from Rotherham and the local area mostly, but we do have people come to us from Doncaster. Our customers are very loyal and, with independent businesses like us, you find that customers are a lot more loyal. For us, it’s great because we get to know people and we get to see families grow and develop which is so nice to see.”
Rotherham Council’s Interim Strategic Director for Regeneration and Environment, Andrew Bramidge, said: “There are a range of independent shops and businesses in Rotherham who offer the essentials to residents and are often the beating heart on our high streets and communities. From our town centre markets to independent shops to the local hairdressers, beauticians, food vendors and more, our businesses drive the local economy and help us to continue to invest within our town.”
Independent Retailer Month is a national awareness month which encourages consumers to shop local so that cities, towns and communities can create more sustainable economies and services.
To find out more about some of the independent retailers in Rotherham town centre, go online to www.rotherhamtowncentre.co.uk.
