‘Owned by the Community, Serving the Community’

(Reproduced from the Joint Parish Magazine-Sept.2023)

Winsham Village shop and Post Office first opened in 1850…..152 years later it was about to close! This was devastating news for our village.

However, thanks to the drive and perseverance of villagers Richard Rose and the late Stella Abbey, plans were drawn up to ensure its future. A Steering Group, under the chairmanship of Robert Shearer, was established and a Business Plan was presented to a packed audience in the Jubilee Hall in 2002 with an invitation to buy shares.  Over £20,000 was raised, enough to make the project viable. The shop reopened under new management after the shortest period between concept and opening of any Community Shop in the Country.

None of the committee members had any retail experience. It was, therefore, a great relief when Winsham resident, Roger Tett, with 25 years of retail experience running small village shops, volunteered his services as shop manager.  The shop reopened on 9 September 2002. An operating loss was envisaged for the first year but thanks to Roger and his wife Margaret’s invaluable guidance, that first trading year ended with a small surplus. 

Our Community Shop is a vital resource and a big attraction for newcomers. Here are some of the comments I have recently received from new residents.  

• ‘The Shop is the centre of the community’
• ‘I wanted somewhere rural but with amenities’
• ‘very impressed with the shop and stock selection’
• ‘...and there is a fully functioning Post Office’
• ‘no necessity to keep driving into Chard’
• ‘the shop is such an asset and so glad we moved here’ 
• ‘I LOVE our shop – what would we do without it?’

 We are so lucky to have such a valuable asset and our sincere thanks go to the current and past staff members and volunteers; without you there would be no shop.  If the shop is important to you, please do what you can to help support it, whether by volunteering your time or just spending a few more pounds with us each week. With ever-increasing costs there is no guarantee that we can break even in two years time, let alone another 21 years!

Do please take part in our shop’s story and have a say in its future by becoming a shareholder at only £10 per share.  To encourage you, we have an exciting special offer - a FREE Winsham Shop bag worth £6.99 when you buy a share/s!  Existing shareholders – you can also claim a new bag if you buy another share! Please pick up an application form from the shop and return it by 15 September, or download it from the Winsham website, just CLICK on the link below.  All shareholders are invited to our December Annual General Meeting and are eligible to vote in major decisions regarding the shop.  

 
Happy 21st Anniversary Winsham Shop……….I’ll definitely be raising a glass!
                                                                                                                                                                  RITA  MILLER