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Background: 

The Village Shop, which had been run for many years by the Forders, closed in 2002. With the closure of the shop the village seemed to lose its heart and its focal point and become simply a dormitory rather than a community. The idea of trying to set up a Community Shop came from the ladies doing the refreshments at the Bonfire Night in 2002. After that there was almost two years of fund raising, jumping through legal hoops and trying to remain positive in the face of many setbacks and delays. The Community Centre was the obvious place for a shop because it is central, well used and has a car park. However after initial discussions with the planners it was clear that they would not give permission for an extension to the Community Centre but would give permission for a temporary building and so the idea of a purpose built portacabin was born. The cabin eventually arrived on a low loader on the wet and windy morning of 13th September 2004 and was lifted into position by a large crane. The Post Office opened on 30th September and the whole project was completed on 16th October 2004 when the ribbon was cut by Simon Baldock of BBC Radio Essex to open the Shop.

Practical details: 

The Community Shop is run by volunteers, and so it was a steep learning curve for everyone! However most of the volunteers seem to be enjoying the experience and the opportunity to meet others from the village. More volunteers will always be needed and so if you have a little time to spare do please consider volunteering!

The present opening hours are, for the Shop:

08.45 - 17.00 Monday to Friday.

08.45 - 13.00 Saturday.

On Sundays and Bank Holidays and we are open from 09.30 to 11.30.

 

The current opening hours of the Post Office are:

09.00 - 13.00 on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. (The Post Office will only allow us to be open for 20 hours per week and this may be reduced in the future. )  In fact the the Post Office were very supportive in setting up our Post Office and as we cost them very little it came as a surprise when we were on the list of Offices to be closed in 2007. In fact they are now thinking of offering us an "Outreach Service" which means that a Postmaster would come and run the Office from inside the Shop but for limited hours.

Trading history:

 

When the Shop first opened it was a worrying time as estimates of takings were checked against the actual takings, but in fact from the start takings have been very encouraging. By the end of the first year of trading the outstanding loans had been repaid. After the first year a part time, paid manageress was appointed and this has given much more direction and also her astute buying has more than made up for her wages! After more than three years of trading everything is still looking very positive.

   

One thing which came as a great shock was prices as everyone had assumed that our prices would have to higher than those in the supermarkets, but that it not the case. Of course there are some things that supermarkets sell at prices which are lower than we can buy for, but there are many items which we sell cheaper than in the supermarkets! When one thinks that the supermarkets would buy in bulk it makes one realise the huge profit that they are making! In practice some of our goods are cheaper than supermarkets, some are more expensive and most are comparable. Given the price of petrol it is better to use your local shops!

What will you find in the shop? Apart from a warm welcome!

 

1.    Over 600 different lines of standard products and groceries.

2.    Fresh bread is delivered daily by De'Aths, of Manningtree. Special requirements can, of

       course, be ordered.

3.    Fresh fruit and vegetables are delivered everyday. Again special orders can be delivered

       the next day.

4.    As far as possible fresh produce will be local and so the Free Range Eggs are from

       Langham and, when available, there will also be locally grown fruit and vegetables.

5.    Products which are unique include such things as key rings with the village crest and an

       interactive, multimedia CD called "Langham, a Pictorial History." The CD contains over 800

       photographs of the village from early times until the present day together with over 30000

       words of description and the history of the village. A second edition of the CD, which will

       be more than twice as large will be available by the summer. We hope that this will

       develop into an archive of photographs of the village and any more contributions would be

       very gratefully received! We would only want to borrow the photographs for a day or so.

 

For For people who read this site but do not live locally these products are also available by mail order.

If you have any questions about the Shop or the stock please email by clicking the icon below:

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