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Budgens began trading in Bourne in 1976 from
antiquated surroundings at premises in West Street, now the Superdrug store,
later moving to a purpose built supermarket in the Burghley Centre.
The shopping complex was opened in 1989 after a £1½ million investment by a
property developer on the old cattle market site that also includes a mall with
14 retail units and a car park with 170 spaces. First signs boded well for the
future with the store being well patronised and in 2000 the facility was
improved with the expansion of the delicatessen and bakery as well as more staff
at the checkouts.
But the new look did not last and as the years went by, services were curtailed
and staffing became a problem and recently it is not always a happy experience
shopping there although not everyone by any means is dissatisfied and there were
some who did obviously find it convenient. Then, in August 1999, Sainsburys
opened their new supermarket in Exeter Street which has been enjoying a
remarkable popularity ever since, always busy and already reaping the fruits of
a major expansion in October 2003 with the addition of new aisles and extra
shelf space, a coffee shop and more car parking. It was inevitable that the
remaining supermarkets, Rainbow, Tesco Express and McColls as well as Budgens,
would feel the strain.
The writing had been on the wall for Budgens for many months while high prices
and inefficiency put them off limits to many shoppers. After several denials by
the management about possible closure, the store eventually shut on Monday 1st
April 2008 despite attempts by the upmarket Waitrose to take over. This company
acquired the lease and promised employment to the existing workers but after
some investigation, decided that it would not be commercially viable. A
spokesman for Waitrose said: "We do not propose to trade at the store in Bourne
for commercial reasons. It was a decision made after long and careful
consideration. We will specifically be targeting food retailers to purchase the
shop and are hopeful that we can conclude a deal as soon as possible. We
understand the disappointment this will cause, particularly for the branch
employees of Budgens who will receive a redundancy package and be given full
support to find alternative positions elsewhere."
The 24 staff were paid off and the supermarket closed and
within a few days the premises had taken on a forlorn air with the signs
removed, the windows shuttered, litter gathering outside on the pavement, the
cash machine not working and by evening, gangs of youngsters were using the
frontage as a play area.
Despite what has gone before, Budgens had become part of the commercial life of
Bourne and left a gap difficult to fill but the premises were
eventually taken over by Co-operative Food in October 2010. Then in September 2013, the
company moved back to Bourne by taking over the integrated food shop at the new
Texaco filling station
forecourt development in South Road. Although a much smaller outlet, the site
does have the advantage of being on the main A15 trunk road with a regular flow
of customers for petrol sales and is also open 24 hours a day.
REPEATED DENIALS OF CLOSURE
Rumours circulating in the town during the summer of 2004 suggested that the
store was closing and that redundancy notices had been issued to all employees.
These stories, repeated in the local press, were consistently denied by the
company but were obviously causing concern because on Friday 17th September the
management issued a statement through its Press Officer, Mr Rod Alexander. It
said:
We have
been advised that rumours are circulating which suggest that our store in Bourne
is about to close.
Clearly such rumours are very unsettling for our staff and customers alike and
we appreciate that a number of our more elderly customers rely heavily upon
Budgens for their shopping needs.
There is no doubt that the opening of Sainsbury's has had a significant effect on
Budgens’ business in Bourne and indeed it is a typical scenario for towns and
villages all around the country. These large superstores gradually drain the
life out of town centres and they really do inflict severe damage on many
businesses. I have no doubt that the implications for some of the small
independent retailers in Bourne have been very considerable and that livelihoods
will have been put at risk.
So what about Budgens?
As readers would expect, regular reviews are carried out on the performance of
each store and Bourne is no exception. As a result of the long-term effects of
Sainsbury's opening, I have to admit that we are not happy with the current
performance of the store and we are looking at various options to increase
sales.
We have a large number of loyal customers who continue to shop with us, but we
need to find ways of enticing back some of the car-borne customers who have
taken their business elsewhere. We also of course have an excellent team of
staff who are determined to reverse the fortunes of the store.
REACTION TO THE 2008 CLOSURE
The Mayor, Councillor
Jane Kingman Pauley, was particularly disappointed. She told The Local
newspaper on Friday 4th April: “I thought if Waitrose came, other shops would
follow. Leaving the building empty is making the town centre look scruffy and
does not give visitors the right image. It will attract graffiti and probably
have its windows smashed. Something has got to be done.”
The town centre manager, Ivan Fuller, also gave the newspaper a gloomy forecast.
“I do not think it will create the right impression for the town. Any unlet
premises are unattractive.”
The town’s shopkeepers were equally upset by the announcement. Jane Good,
chairman of the Bourne Chamber of Trade, told the Stamford Mercury on
Friday 4th April that it would now be a struggle to attract major stores to the
town centre. “I do not think we will get really big retailers here because of
the size of our population”, she added.
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BUDGENS IN THE EARLY DAYS |
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The supermarket originally opened in West
Street in 1976, the first to operate in Bourne, and soon became a
popular call for shoppers. But as one-stop shopping became the
vogue, larger premises were needed and the company was among the
first to take space at the Burghley Centre, becoming the largest and
most important retail outlet when it opened in 1989 with adjoining
car parking spaces. |
REVISED SEPTEMBER 2013
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