Meet 3 new market traders who opened in the past week

More eateries, businesses and stalls have started life in their new £11 million town centre home.

The Covid-19 secure site at Time Square opened earlier this month after years in the making.

Among the new traders are Tattoo studio Ascension Tattoo and barbers Pesho Professional.

French deli Petit Francais will be selling its handcrafted baguettes and pastries from tomorrow, Friday, while NAJS Feet and Beauty Academy will open on Monday.

Meanwhile there were three new additions to the Cookhouse food court this week.

Shawarma and More will be serving up Middle Eastern street food, Jakblak will offer a modern take on British culinary classics and the new Artisan Bar will boast a range of cocktails and wines.

Artisan Bar owner David Sharp highlighted three weeks of ‘blood, sweat and tears’ before opening on Monday.

David Sharp

One of his key focuses is to educate customers about drinks to enhance their knowledge.

“I think for us we don’t want to be this ordinary bar,” he said.

“We want to be a bar that involves you and the drink as much as us – and tells you what’s in the drink.

“You will see spirits that you’ve never seen before because they are new and they are premium and a lot of them are from small independents, you certainly won’t see them in the supermarkets.

“We employ personalities, we don’t employ cocktail people.

“We’ll employ people who are comfortable talking to people and then we add the skill and train them on how to make drinks.

“We’ve got no huge expectation because we want to be that true partner with Warrington Council and the market and evolve.

“This should be the year of independents, of independents coming back, forget the big supermarkets.

“Are we truly going to get the economy going by all shopping in the supermarkets? No, we are going to get it going by supporting independents in a place like this.”

David says a range of procedures are in place behind the bar to help curb the spread of coronavirus.

“We are washing our hands an awful lot, we’ve got gels, we’ve got masks, we’ve had proper glass screens put up,” he said.

Mr and Mrs Younis, owners of Shawarma and More, have been thrilled with the start of life in the purpose-built market.

Mr and Mrs Younis

“It has been fantastic – we like it,” said Mr Younis.

“We have had businesses before but at the moment this is the only site we’ve got.

“We only started on Monday and so far, so good.”

Mr Younis said he has been pleasantly surprised at the footfall in the market and he shared his views on life for the business amid a pandemic.

“I wasn’t expecting this, it’s more than what we expected,” he said.

“I got used to the situation, it is a bit annoying and it slows things down like people queuing up and things like that but it’s not the end of the world.

“The challenge at the moment is to find the easiest way to serve, for example we opened yesterday (Monday) and people are queuing up.

“We just want the social distancing but with having people queuing up it’s a bit impossible.”

With his cooking inspired by his family in Kurdistan, where he grew up, he is hoping to win over customers.

And Mr Younis shared some of his favourite dishes.

He said: “I would recommend a mixed shawarma wrap or the biryani dishes, these are the dishes I love.”

Mehvan Mella, who works at Pesho Professional, is pleased to be part of the new market.

Mehvan Mella

“It’s really good, we’re happy to be here,” he said.

Mehvan believes people remain extremely worried over coronavirus although he is confident that will change over the coming months.

“That is why we are a bit quiet, people are scared to come in,” he said.

“It’s still not that busy, it’s steady.”

Council leader Russ Bowden has been delighted with the early success of the new market, which he believes will be among the best in the north west.

The Labour politician urged people to support town centre businesses but reaffirmed the need for people to take steps to ensure safety.

“It’s been another successful week for Warrington as our town continues to get back to business,” he said.

“Warrington town centre is alive with activity once more, with traffic in the Time Square car park almost back to the same level as this time last year.

“The large numbers of people returning to our shops, restaurants, pubs, bars – and, of course, the stunning, new Warrington Market – have seen Warrington named by Centre for Cities as one of the leading destinations in the UK for footfall increase since non-essential shops reopened.

Cllr Russ Bowden

“It’s testament to the resilience of our businesses community, whose positivity, adaptability and willingness to work with a range of partners has really helped them hit the ground running as we restart our economy.

“We are maintaining strong dialogue with town centre businesses and we are expecting many more to be reopening this weekend.

“We know how important a successful high street is to our economic recovery, so it’s great news that we are making such great strides forward.”

Cllr Bowden says the safety of customers and staff is paramount but has been pleased to see shoppers following social distancing guidelines and observing the signage in the town centre.

“These safety rules will be tighter from July 24 following the Government’s announcement that, from this date, it will be mandatory to wear a face covering in shops and supermarkets,” he said.

“We’re achieving great things in making sure the reopening of our town centre is safe and successful.

“Please continue to support local businesses and the economy as the recovery from Covid-19 continues and please ensure you abide by the latest rules to help curb the spread of the virus.”

Cllr Bob Barr, leader of the town’s Liberal Democrats, the opposition group, says like other towns Warrington is going to have to reinvent itself for the post-Covid era.

Cllr Bob Barr

It is something he believes needs to be widely discussed and gain broad public support.

He added: “It has been good to see the community in Warrington react to the Covid-19 crisis in a very positive way.

“The measures taken to attract shoppers back into the town centre and to open Time Square, albeit with much less fanfare than we would have wanted, appear to be working.

“However it would be wrong to assume that we are going to return to ‘business as usual’ any time soon, if at all.

“It isn’t going to be an easy journey so many businesses and individuals will need continuing support but we can hope that a better Warrington emerges at the end of the process.”

Meanwhile, Warrington South MP Andy Carter has urged people to abide by new rules and wear face coverings in shops to reduce the risk of spreading coronavirus.

They will become mandatory in shops and supermarkets from tomorrow, Friday.

Under the new rules, people who do not wear a face covering will face a fine of up to £100, in line with the sanction on public transport.

But there are some circumstances – including people who have certain disabilities and children under 11 – which will see individuals qualify as being exempt from the rules.

Conservative Mr Carter, who won his seat in December, says there have been significant falls in the level of Covid-19 transmission in recent weeks, with the number of people hospitalised in Warrington now down to single figures.

MP Andy Carter

He added: “Our local high streets and independent businesses are the backbone of our local economy here in Warrington and I’ve seen great innovation as businesses have adapted, changing their target customers and working with suppliers and customers to make the best of what have been difficult times.

“Things are slowly starting to return to some normality, footfall is growing, car journeys are around 85 per cent of normal but public transport still lags behind.

“Wearing a mask is another step we can take to try and minimise the spread of the virus in areas where high numbers of people gather indoors.

“Every time I’ve travelled to Westminster I’ve worn one on the train and while it’s a bit strange at first you quickly get used to it.

“Face masks not only protect you but also reduce the risk of it being spread by someone who has no symptoms.

“I’d urge residents to respect others around you while in shops and to follow the guidance diligently.”

Hairdressers and barbers in England were permitted to reopen their doors on July 4 after months out of work as long as they met the Government’s Covid-19 secure criteria for keeping staff and customers as safe as possible.

Lords of the North, on Barbauld Street, is hopeful business will pick up in the near future.

Owner Cheryl Good, who has been in the industry on and off for 25 years, said: “We have had to distance the chairs, get rid of some of the Saturday staff because you can’t have as many bodies in, get the correct personal protective equipment, different equipment, different cleaning materials – much more of it – and hand sanitiser.

Cheryl Good with her team

“It was busy and then extremely quiet this week, people are waiting for beard trims I think.

“They are holding off because they want their beard and their hair done but we are not allowed to touch beards at the moment.”

On whether the business has ever faced a challenge close to the current one, Cheryl said: “Absolutely nothing. Only when I first started when I had to have a second job at the bar down the road, but we survived the first three years and we have not looked back since.”

Cheryl also thanked her customers for their continued support.

“We have fabulous customers, they love us,” she added.