(Reposted from Adur and Worthing Council website)
Worthing's independent traders are open and ready to safely welcome shoppers over the festive period.
With the national lockdown restrictions now lifting, Worthing Borough Council's Deputy Leader Cllr Kevin Jenkins took a tour of the town centre to see first hand the significant steps businesses have taken to keep their staff and customers safe.
Forming part of the #WinterWelcomeAW campaign - which is encouraging residents get out and about safely this festive time to support their own wellbeing and the local economy - Cllr Jenkins heard from a range of retailers, including florists, jewelers and cafes.
Central to all the conversations was one thing: the importance that shopping, eating and drinking locally will make to independent traders in this most difficult of years.
First on the list was Sewsilver craft shop, a fixture in the Guildbourne Centre for a decade.
Owner Sam Whittington, who is also chair of the Worthing Town Centre Initiative, said:
“All the independent businesses I know have been bending over backwards to make their premises COVID-safe.
“At Sewsilver we regulate how many people come in. I've had people come in and say they feel so much safer in here than in a supermarket.
“We've already got a fantastic independent offering, we've got some real gems. But all these traders will need your support.”
