A Bristol optician has said it is on the “verge of imminent closure” after more than 25 years of trading.
Bramley Pope Opticians opened on St Stephen’s Street in Bristol’s Old City in 1997 to cater for workers in nearby offices. The business was set up by owner Philippa Bramley and her former college friend Roger Pope - whose London-based optician was granted two Royal Warrants and supplied glasses to Queen Elizabeth II and to King Charles III when he was Prince of Wales.
The independent shop’s management told BusinessLive that the last three years had been a “big fight”, with fewer people now based in city centre offices after the Covid-19 pandemic promoted a shift to working from home.
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Manager and dispensing optician Mark Ilett, who now runs the shop having joined the business in 2014, said a number of changes made by Bristol City Council to the local area in recent years also had "a huge knock" on its trading.
Mr Ilett said the council's decision to pedestrianise St Stephen's Street, restrict traffic travelling down adjoining Baldwin Street, and the closure of the nearby Queen Charlotte Street car park, had made it “really, really hard” for people to get to the Old City, and resulted in a drop in footfall and people coming into the shop to browse.
Mr Ilett said he had received "at least 20 to 30 phone calls" in the last couple of years from customers to tell him they were no longer able to come to the shop anymore, adding “It seems like a small number, but to a business this size, that’s quite a significant percentage of people that we have known for 20 odd years as well.
“That’s the killer for me. We are a real people business. I know people who come in here. For them to have the decision taken out of their hands, it's a bit rubbish for them.”
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Many of the businesses on St Stephen’s Street are restaurants, and Mr Ilett said the council had offered “very little" consultation with other companies on the street on how the change could impact on trade.
Mr Ilett also said the council had told restaurants neighbouring the shop to get rid of bin containers made to house their waste, instead asking them to leave bin bags on the street for collection, attracting rats and making the area look "terrible" to visitors.
Mr Ilett said: "It’s all been a constant series of changes since lockdown. I get that they wanted to pedestrianise the street to prioritise space and to give the restaurants more table room, but there was very little consultation with other businesses in the street as to how it may affect them.
"It’s been a real negative impact on our business, because we see far less foot traffic now. It’s harder to get to us. With Queen Charlotte Street car park closing as well, it’s very difficult for people to park around here. I have got patients who need to travel from door to door, and they can no longer come to us because they can't get to us because of these changes, which is rubbish.”
Mr Ilett added that he was concerned about the future for small businesses in Bristol City Centre, with
Mr Ilett said: “There are very odd decisions being made at a council level in Bristol. It sort of feels like they’re being made by people who don’t live here and don’t really understand the city. It’s a worrying time for small businesses in Bristol. This part of Bristol has just been systematically stripped of businesses. I remember not so long ago when Baldwin Street was thriving and there was a lot going on. Nowadays I don’t even know what’s there anymore.
"This area just feels like it is dying a little bit and it could do with something being done here. The council have tried things, but it is a bit piecemeal. They launched a website called ‘Where’s It To?’ which tried to drive traffic here, but nothing really worked.”
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BusinessLive has contacted Bristol City Council for comment.
Mr Ilett said it was “very, very unlikely” that Bramley Pope Opticians would be able to pay its bills at the end of September, with the business having posted losses in its previous two financial years.
The optician, who is now Bramley Pope’s sole employee after Ms Bramley retired in 2020 and two other colleagues later left, said the business had invested in advertising and redeveloping its website to drive up custom, though he noted “very little” of its trade came from online.
Mr Ilett said: “Our frames are really high quality and high end, and we will take time to make sure they suit you and fit you correctly, it's a much more bespoke service, which is why I don’t want to do it online, I think it negates what I do here. Most independents try to exist at the higher end of it, because you can’t compete with Specsavers.”
Mr Ilett said he did not know what he would do if the business was forced to close its doors, adding that the situation was “gutting”.
“When I qualified with my optical degree my real hope was I would get to run my own practice one day. And although I don’t own this place, I’m still an employee, I am given completely free reign, so it’s been like owning my own practice. I have put a lot of effort and a lot of hard work in, and it’s just not there.
"There is no passing trade. We used to be busy. You would have people popping in, all throughout the day, Monday to Friday, there would be people popping in and out. Now, we really only see people on Wednesdays and Thursdays when we test. The rest of the time it is just dead. I am so despondent about it. There’s nothing you can do to chase it.”