Stretford Foodhall, a local favourite that’s been at the heart of an entire town centre’s regeneration, has announced its shocking and sudden closure.
The business, which is part retailer and part food hall, said that it has been a ‘tortuous few years’ and that it will be closing for good next week.
Stretford Foodhall is part of the General Stores group, perhaps best-known for operating Ancoats General Store.
While the bulk of the business has always been about crafting the region’s ‘coolest cornershops’, where you can browse local produce and products alongside your usual essentials, Stretford Foodhall was a new offering entirely.
A huge portion of their site on the edge of Stretford Mall was given over to a dining space, with an ever-rotating selection of local traders taking up residence in the kitchens.
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Stretford Foodhall was quickly award-winning and has often been praised for helping to kick-start the area’s regeneration.
But they have now written that they have ‘no more left in the tank’ and will close for good on Sunday 11 February.
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In a lengthy statement, signed by founder Mital Morar, they wrote that they had had problems from their opening in 2019, when they were ‘too busy with not enough seats’.
Egg & Co was a recent trader at Stretford Foodhall. Credit: The Manc GroupWaffle Kart also had a residency at Stretford Foodhall. Credit: The Manc Group
Stretford Foodhall then said it never properly recovered from the impact of Covid, which struck less than a year after its launch.
Mital’s open letter stated: “We are acutely aware, on this journey of survival, we have let some people down. We apologise unreservedly for this and hope to make right one day.”
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It continued by praising its ‘individual and amazing’ staff, and thanking all the many food traders, pop ups, breweries, and artists who have been part of the journey over the last five years.
Stretford Foodhall’s statement concluded: “As a Manchester born and bred business, local and independent, our confidence and Ikigai (as Masako once taught us) has been knocked. It has been a tortuous few years. But we get up and fight daily. Whilst we are closing, we haven’t given up. We look forward to serving you again one day… for now see us at @generalstores_.”
The news of the closure comes less than a year after the group shut down its Sale Foodhall.
It comes with great sadness and torment that we have decided to close on Sunday 11th February 2024
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Opening in 2019 to much risk and applaud we very quickly had problems! We were too busy, didn’t have enough seats and had to evolve very quickly. A good problem! For all the naysayers, Stretford supported us and we couldn’t have been happier.
We hadn’t even traded one year and along came covid and changed all that. We haven’t ever really recovered. Whilst trading through, winning awards, doing takeaway food and coffee, we evolved as much as we could with what we could post covid. Entering inflation, cost of living crisis and this crazy enduring energy situation… we have no more left in the tank.
We continue to be involved with the GMCA dialogue to support them in lobbying government for change in the hospitality sector. Too many friends are suffering and we stand with you.
We are very concious of our strengths and weaknesses. We are very concious of the current environment and we have tried our best with all the headwinds to make a go of it and keep going for the greater good. We are grateful for the support from our customers, our relationships with food traders and suppliers. We appreciate BRUNTWOOD who helped where they could and we have no doubt the new and final vision will deliver the goods. Sadly, our part in this journey cannot continue.
We are acutely aware, on this journey of survival, we have let some people down. We apologise unreservedly for this and hope to make right one day. As you know, our roots are embedded in retail. We will continue on this journey and navigate this tough environment there.
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This message is written by Mital, as Proprietor. This closure isn’t a reflection of our colleagues in branch, they too have endured a tough ride of uncertainty and changing decisions day to day. We have had to become an operation we don’t aspire to be and this too cannot continue. We Thank You for your service and will support your roles and continuity as best we can. You are all individual and amazing and we wish you only the best for the future.
We would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to all the food traders, creatives, pop ups, breweries, artists and more who have engaged and explored this road with us in Stretford. Our warmest wishes to our business neighbours and community friends who have humbled us with your friendship. We will meet again one day.
As a Manchester born and bred business, local and independent, our confidence and Ikigai (as Masako once taught us) has been knocked. It has been a tortuous few years. But we get up and fight daily. Whilst we are closing, we haven’t given up. We look forward to serving you again one day… for now see us at @generalstores_
Thank You Thank You… Mital & Family
Featured image: Publicity picture
News
Two Trafford towns are set to see dozens of new EV charging points installed imminently
Danny Jones
Two big towns on the border of Greater Manchester and Cheshire are set to see a fresh batch of electric vehicle (EV) charging points installed throughout their streets by Trafford Council very soon.
Local authorities have teamed up with engineering and infrastructure company Amey to roll out a series of new EV charging stations across Trafford, starting with Altrincham and Hale.
Dating all the way back to 2020, the collaboration with Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the brand was tasked with helping improve sustainable travel across the area as the government body’s electric vehicle charging suppliers.
Steady improvements have been made across the 10 boroughs, but this particular update marks one of the biggest network upgrades that the likes of Alty and Hale have seen for some time.
Good news – we are thrilled to announce the installation of our first public EV charge points in collaboration with @TraffordCouncil.
Issuing a statement on Wednesday, 17 September, the firm – which specialises in managing, designing and maintaining complex facilities and transport infrastructure across the country – announced that they will “start the installation of EV charging points in Trafford in the coming weeks.”
It is expected that “up to 100 new public charges” will be integrated throughout the respective town centres and residential streets as the suburbs continues to push towards its sustainability goals.
As per Altrincham Today, Amey account director Anna Gornall said: “We’re excited to launch our first EV charge points in Trafford, working in partnership with Trafford Council (TC) to make electric vehicle charging more accessible to local communities.
“As the UK’s leading provider of energy transition and decarbonisation solutions, we’re well placed to use our existing expertise and resources to support TC in delivering a holistic public EV charging network for local communities.
“We’re helping residents make the switch, so everyone can plug in and power a greener Trafford.”
The country at large has various carbon-free initiatives, including the aspiration of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050; the electoral ward of Trafford itself continues to thrive in this field, having recently won environmental accolades, including 12 ‘Green Flag Awards’ this past July.
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Peter Anderson, Managing Director of Transport Infrastructure at Amey, commented: “This is a pivotal moment in Amey’s energy transition strategy. By leveraging our extensive experience in whole lifecycle asset management, strong partnerships, and innovative solutions, we can deliver value for both our clients and members of the public who will use Amey’s electric vehicle charge points.
“Working with Trafford Council, we are making electric vehicle charging more accessible to local communities and helping residents make the switch to EVs.
“Amey is well-positioned to support emerging opportunities within this landscape, and we are delighted to be working with Trafford and other local authorities to provide the public EV infrastructure needed to achieve the government’s transition to net zero.”
As for Trafford Council, Corporate Director of Place, Richard Roe, went on to add: “We are delighted to be working with Amey on this project to bring more and better charging options to the people of Trafford.
“This is an extension to the current EV charging options in the borough and is great news for committed EV owners and those who are thinking about going electric.”
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (via Amey Ltd)
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Further disruption expected as more bus strikes announced across Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
Further disruption is expected as even more bus strikes have been announced across Greater Manchester this autumn.
It comes after the strikes set to place this month from 19 to 22 September were announced a couple of weeks back, and now a second round will take place towards the end of this month and going into early October.
In case this is the first you’re hearing of the upcoming industrial action, 2,000 workers who are employed by Stagecoach, Metroline Manchester, and First Bus Rochdale – all of which are firms among those that make up the bus part of the Bee Network – are due to walk out in a co-ordinated strike amid an ongoing pay dispute.
Unite the Union says all the firms are ‘highly profitable’ and it’s therefore ‘disappointing’ that workers are being denied a fair wage.
More strikes have been announced on the Bee Network this month / Credit: TfGM
At Stagecoach, around 1,000 drivers based across the Oldham, Stockport, and Middleton depots have rejected a pay offer of 3.5%, and 1,000 Metroline Manchester members will also do the same after turning down an ‘unsatisfactory’ below-inflation pay offer.
Workers at both Metroline and Stagecoach believe the offer doesn’t address years of low pay they’ve recieved, especially given the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Then, over at First Bus Rochdale, 110 members have rejected this year’s pay offer of 6%, as they feel this does not go far enough to address the fact they’ve had years of being paid less than their counterparts at other companies, and are still the lowest paid in the region.
Stagecoach, Metroline, and First Bus Rochdale, part of First Group PLC, are all firms which have seen a rise in profits in recent years.
2,000 drivers are set to stage strike action over two different periods / Credit: TfGM
The second round of strikes will now take place from from 30 September to 2 October.
Speaking ahead of both sets of upcoming strikes, Unite General Secretary, Sharon Graham, said: “These companies are very profitable but are putting greed over their hardworking members of staff.
“Further strike action will be extremely disruptive, however this is a dispute entirely of the bus companies’ making and they could solve it easily by coming back with a better deal.
“Our members involved in the dispute have Unite’s complete support.”
Unite Regional Officer, Colin Hayden, added: “The strikes this week as well as the further action we have called will cause travel chaos in Greater Manchester. However, it is entirely the fault of the employers involved, who have failed to address the issue of low pay and reward their staff accordingly.
Daisy Jackson -
2nd February 2024 
