Another shop on Lower Marsh scheduled for closure?

Just seen this - might be jumping to conclusions but looks like Cooper's Natural Foods will disappear early next year. That street seems to be in a state of flux.

http://www.fieldandsons.biz/Property/Commercial/London/Lower-Marsh/17lowermarsh.aspx

That would be a shame, it's always busy when I go in there

Yes. Second Hand Bookshop, Coopers, Guys and Dolls, In Shoku, Steve's B&B, and Barbarella's all sold or for sale.
Things change, certainly some of the buildings could do with being repaired and restored, and the businesses updated, but Cooper's is a local institution, affordable, good health food supplies, great food and run by nice people. And the book store was an idiosyncratic gem. Seems a shame - with things going 'upmarket', you'd think this is when Cooper's could hold it's own.
I'm not a fan of the pink and yellow road either. It's anachronistic with the historic character, the road now looks like a town centre circa 1990, rather than one of 'London's oldest and best loved market streets', as described by Waterloo Quarter (who backed the 'regeneration').
It seems a shame a more appropriate scheme, something more like Broadway Market, wasn't encouraged. If they were adamant things had to change, do something that enhanced it's qualities, rather than destroy them. There won't be any Woody Allen filming on the street anymore because of it's 'old London' character. But you will get Mary Portas.
Do other people have opinions on the road surface?
I think it's interesting this commercial rental site has a photoshopped image, extending the now removed cobbles, to make the street look quaint and Victorian.

http://www.estatesgazette.com/propertylink/advert/lower_marsh_london-london-3418793.htm

During the consultation, I opposed the new road surfacing and the accompanied tarting up of Lower Marsh because I could see that it would drive up rents and force the shops that made Lower Marsh special out.

Unusually, I'm appalled to find out that I was right.

hetty wrote:

Yes. Second Hand Bookshop, Coopers, Guys and Dolls, In Shoku, Steve's B&B, and Barbarella's all sold or for sale.

Blimey, that's three places that have very strong personal memories of good times there: Bookshop, Coopers and InShoku.

Can't believe they all on the way out!

Every shop that close on Lower Marsh is a loss to the community whether one uses it or not because the footfall it brought to the market diminishes and the remaining businesses suffer the downward trend and find it harder to make a living, especially after suffering the insult of Waterloo Quarter having a compulsory levy on every business and for the cafes like Sue's and Ruby murray it must be particularly galling. Having to pay an organisation that imports direct competition in the form of 15 or so street food stalls and watch your takings suffer because of it msut drive them mad.
I digress, I do not believe that Coopers is being forced to close, I believe the truth to be that the owner is selling up taking his profits and is going to enjoy them in his retirement and good luck to him.

Thebunhouse, glad to hear that about retirement, it makes a nice change!

I always think that about Marsh Ruby - it's really hard for them to compete with all the street food vendors and seems very unfair.

I really like your way of expressing the opinion and sharing the information.

Yes Coopers is about them selling up. As is the Book Shop. It is good for them they get to capitalise on the increase in land value, what is a shame though, is that rather than sell-up, they weren't able to make their businesses more viable and to benefit from the changes that way.

I like the market food vendors - the success of them is proof that's what people in nearby offices want. What's not working is the look of the food vendors stalls, the pointy roof, red plastic and the 'Lower Marsh Market' font are tacky and awful. It's a historic street, the market vendors should be given stalls that suit the street. Instead it looks like a shanty town.

A big problem is also the integration with the shops. Perhaps it could work that all the restaurants and cafes are given a market stall pitch for free to trade from, then their clients can sit in the restaurants if they want. This would create a connection between the market and street offering.

On Leather Lane in Clerkenwell you have food vendors and shops co-existing. A street Burrito vendor was so successful that after a year trading they last week opened a cafe, with queues around the block. So, it can work. The food offering can work in a permanent site.

The new shop in the old Book Shop is very lovely by the way. Antique and contemporary furniture. They've also opened the space so you can see the original architecture, it was designed by the previous owners in the 60s and is a fabulous building.

I always admired the interior of the book shop and the garden out the back, shame the guy running it was such a grumpy so and so.

P.s. Hetty, I've sent you a pm regarding the room.