| "We’ve been here for three years and we’ve had three really successful years. The business has grown immensely during that time. We do get a lot of passing trade and when the tram comes there will be more people passing so I expect that will be good. I’d encourage any business to open up here. The distinct thing about Drake Street is that you get more individual stuff here. Locally owned shops and businesses. The main problem with Drake Street though is that there are too many fast food places which can make the street look closed throughout the day as many of them don’t open until much later." |
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"The biggest thing that could transform Drake Street is the redevelopment of Iversons. If it could be opened up as a place like Afflecks Palace in Manchester that could really change the street., individual units, local businesses. It’ll clean it up and draw people from the town centre. It’s very difficult for local businesses, especially creative designers, to get started and there’s nothing in Rochdale to provide that kind of opportunity. Iversons would be the natural place to start something like that."
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"We get a mix of people, from really young to 70 year olds, It s very strange in a hairdressers, where businesses tend to be more defined by the age group they serve. We get a huge variety of people, we have special sessions for example for local Sikhs, whose beliefs prohibit others people from seeing their hair. We’ve now got 20 staff on 2 floors. A lot of the businesses on Drake street are word of mouth, there is a great deal of personal relationships that are at the heart of shopping here. I honestly don’t know what many of the businesses do, but I keep finding out that there’s a lot going on, things are sold here that I had never imagined. "
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