Prestigious Chesterfield cobbler says 'parking cost is driving footfall away'

Villa Webster, who works at Ingmans on Burlington Street,says the situation for independent retailers in the town centre has become a “nightmare”.

As more and more small shops close, shoppers opt to park for free at Ravenside Retail Park, increasingly so since Marks & Spencer moved there.

Currently, if people do choose to park in the town centre, Chesterfield Borough Council charges start at £2.10 for an hour, increasing to £6.40 for up to 12 hours.

Ingmans, offering premium shoe repairs, high-quality shoes, clothing and handmade leather goods, was opened by cobbler of 30 years Andy Ingman in 2018.

Having weathered the pandemic by offering postal shoe repairs, the indie retailer is now battling the recession and may require “divine intervention” to keep going, says Villa.

Villa said: “Footfall is down because of parking charges and since big sites like M&S moved out it’s just died.

Ingmans owner Andy Ingman started repairing shoes aged 14 and managed several shops before starting his own in 2018.

Speaking about the business, Villa said: “A lot of customers come back because they are hand-made shoes – we have customers from as far north as Scotland for shoe repairs.

"We recently had a guy from America post us his shoes for repair – the standard of repair and service we give is second-to-none.

"We’ve had people come in who have had their shoes butchered but Andy and the team have brought them back to life.”

Though Ingmans has a loyal customer base, Villa says the shop has now become a “destination store” due the town centre’s dwindling footfall.

She said: “The service and the level of work is up there but we need more customers – it’s a worry for Andrew because this is all he’s ever done.”

Councillor Kate Sarvent, Chesterfield Borough Council’s cabinet member for town centres, said: “These are challenging times for local government that require us to make difficult decisions.

"Increasing car parking charges by even a small amount is not an easy decision and in doing so we are very mindful of the impact on our residents, local businesses and on the town centre overall.

“We do offer a range of parking concessions for residents and visitors, including the residents parking scheme or weekly, monthly and annual pre-payment options – all of which offer a parking discount.”