here - St Neots Town Council

Business As Usual at the Historic 18th Century
In the days when the fastest mode of travel
was on horseback, or by horse-drawn coach,
there were many coaching inns and hostelries
in St Neots. Due to its prominent position
on the Great North Road, one of the most
important coaching inns was The Cross Keys
which still retains today a great deal of its
18th Century brick facade.
Approximately twenty five years ago the old Cross Keys
Hotel and courtyard was given a new lease of life when it
was converted and developed into what has now become
a bustling, diverse shopping thoroughfare which gives
shoppers access from Priory Lane - near Waitrose and
its busy car park - straight through into the town’s High
Street.
The shopping mews has more than a dozen retail outlets
which offer a large variety of services ranging from
hairdressers, tattoo parlour, sweet shop,lingerie shop and
much, much more.
Paul Goldstraw, proprietor of Goldstraw Jewellers, said
he had been happily conducting business in Cross Keys
Mews for 12 years. He pointed out that the important
walkway has done a great deal to help create the thriving,
retail community that exists in the mews today. He said:
“The walkway has ensured there is a constant flow of
customers and potential customers walking past our
shops. Obviously this is good for business.”
Paul said that he was ‘very confident and happy’ with the
location of Goldstraw Jewellers in the Cross Keys Mews.
Shop proprietor Barry Hamilton, whose shop sells a huge
range of grocery items, flowers and plants, has been
located in the mews since 1986 - and was one of the first
to move into a shopping unit when they were brand-new.
Barry, who moved his green grocery business from the Old
Arcade which used to be located nearby in the High Street,
said that naturally there had been a change of tenancy
over the years but he had always been very happy and
contented to stay in the mews. He said: “We have lots of
traffic through which is good for business. There are really
not many small places available around here and anyway,
units in the High Street are more expensive.”
So although the sight of coaches discharging weary and
thirsty travellers and the sound of clattering hooves in the
courtyard has long ceased to be, the transformation of the
Cross Keys has ensured it continues to this day to be an
important centre of enterprise and retail in St Neots.
Tourism Award for Barretts
At their Annual General
Meeting early in May,
the Huntingdonshire
Association for
Tourism (HAT)
announced two
tourism awards were
going to St Neotsbased
businesses.
The committee unanimously agreed that the HAT trophy, awarded
annually to a non-member business for their contribution to local
tourism, should go to top High Street store, Barretts.
A brochure display, owned and managed by HAT to help distribute
literature about local attractions and accommodation providers, has a
prominent site in the store, which has been particularly helpful since the
closure of the St Neots Tourism Information Centre.
Also presented at the AGM was the Wyvern Staley Grace Award to
Janice Thompson of New Found Place in Southoe, - a four star gold
self catering development - for her excellent work producing the
association’s new website www.huntingdon-accommodation.org.uk in
association with local firm, Blue Prawn.
In view of Huntingdonshire District Council’s staffing cuts, the
association has agreed for this year to handle all tourism enquiries going
to the HDC call centre and these are now being forwarded on.
4
Priorities June 2011
new look
It happened so quickly that custo
The recent refit at Boots in St Neots High Stre
there was little disruption to customers. Th
The new-look store features a larger dispe
making the service more personal - which is d
collecting prescriptions, also a larg
Since November 2009 the store has been o
10am to 4pm on Sunday, enabling the store t
pharmacy service - from pharmacy prescript
reviews. Boots also offer a repeat prescription
and waiting to
The new-look store was launched by retired p
pharmacist at Boots for many years