Greggs meets its match as hundreds oppose plans to open new store in town centre

Hundreds of residents successful a beauteous marketplace municipality are up successful arms implicit plans to unfastened a Greggs’ store connected their precocious street.

Plans for the bakery-chain to determination into a vacant portion successful Swaffham, Norfolk, has led to choler among locals who accidental large sanction businesses aren’t invited successful their town.

Residents successful the Georgian marketplace municipality person rushed to motion a petition opposing the program and to support a fashionable household bakery.

Well Bread Bakers, successful Swaffham, Norfolk, are amongst hundreds of residents objecting to the proposals for the bakery-chain to acceptable up shop.

They person been a steadfast favourite successful Swaffham for the past 40 years with galore residents opting to store local.

A petition, acceptable up by section nonmigratory Karl Chappell, has reached 961 signatures successful absorption to the connection to unfastened the Greggs – and support the ‘heart’ of the town.

Emma and Andy Godfrey, owners of Well Bread Bakers, said their tiny concern could beryllium forced to marque redundancies if radical chose to spell to Greggs.

Emma, 35, said: ‘If Greggs determine successful a year’s clip that they don’t privation to enactment unfastened successful Swaffham, losing tiny businesses for the involvement of 1 isn’t bully for the town.

‘We are making capable wealth to wage for our outgoings and conscionable capable to support going.

‘But if a large capable information of our takings are lost, we’re going to person to look astatine antithetic ways to chopped our costs.

‘Greggs isn’t a bakery per se arsenic it is besides a ample concatenation java shop.

‘We person tons of autarkic java shops already. For visiting trade, radical spot a sanction they cognize and spell successful determination alternatively than research a small hidden gem.

‘Locals similar to enactment radical they cognize and they’d alternatively bargain successful places wherever they cognize wherever the wealth is going.

‘We person 14 squad members present and each azygous 1 lives wrong 5 miles of Swaffham. It’s a shame this could beryllium lost.’

Well Bread Bakers person been a favourite successful Swaffham for the past 40 years – with Andy Godfrey, 61, taking implicit the concern successful 2002 aft moving determination astir of his life.

Mum-of-two Emma added: ‘Wage and vigor costs are astatine an each clip precocious and tiny businesses similar america are having to combat to survive.

‘We merchantability filled rolls and blistery nutrient – with Greggs coming successful that is going to impact our take-ins. We’d person to marque redundancies arsenic we can’t support putting our prices up.

‘I’m 35 and I person 2 children astatine school. This is excavation and my husband’s lone root of income.

‘It pays our owe and everything we bash with our children. We can’t conscionable unopen the doors and leap into different job. My husband’s accomplishment is successful baking.

‘I don’t deliberation the municipality assembly for Swaffham is bothered and neither is Breckland.

‘They don’t privation an bare store and we recognize that arsenic concern people. But 1 store isn’t worthy losing 3 more.

‘We’re present successful an system wherever the 2 adults successful a household request to work. People don’t person clip to spell and look astir the shops connected a Friday afternoon.

‘Without support, tiny businesses aren’t going to beryllium astir anymore.

‘We are acrophobic for the aboriginal of our ain concern but besides for different section autarkic businesses successful the town.’

Marian Gibson, 73, has lived connected the outskirts of Swaffham for 40 years and said determination was nary request for Greggs erstwhile the municipality already had its ain autarkic businesses.

She said: ‘I don’t deliberation we request it. We’ve got a bully bakers and we don’t request the competition.

‘Swaffham should enactment arsenic a marketplace municipality – we’ve already got loads of supermarkets and we request to support these tiny household shops running.

‘I deliberation the assembly should beryllium doing more.’

Swaffham Town Council person nary objections to the proposal.

Get successful interaction with our quality squad by emailing america astatine [email protected].

For much stories similar this, check our quality page.

MORE : There’s 1 large contented with the Britishcore inclination — and it’s each to bash with food

MORE : Here’s wherever to get the cheapest Pumpkin Spiced Latte for conscionable £2.20

MORE : Rosie ‘the oldest feline successful the world’ dies aged 33

This tract is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.