Cirencester Shopping
Cirencester has a diverse range of shops that will cater for many people's needs. The town centre has the usual chain stores including WH Smith, Fat Face, Jessops, The Orange Shop, Vodafone, Argos, Boots and The Sony Centre.
But it is the smaller, and often independently owned, stores that attract many people to shop in Cirencester. There are many high quality clothing stores for women, the excellent children's toy store Crocodile, Gardiners (Cotswold's biggest homecentre), Keith's coffee shop, Toomers (pet store) and Hi Ho Silver (jewellery) and many more to choose from.Julian Graves is the UK's largest independent specialist snacks and ingredients retailer, with a network of nearly 300 outlets nationwide. The Cirencester store can be found on the corner of the Bishops Wall shopping centre entrance in Cricklade Street. The premises was previously occupied by a shoe shop, Priceless Shoes.
The town's only major specialist electrical retailer, Currys, closed and the premises was reopened with a Costa Coffee.
The are a number of town centre car parks that you can use, including a small number of space in The Market Place itself.
A walk around the shops in Cirencester
The Waterloo Car Park will be the first car park that you will probably encouter. It's position, just off London Road, is ideal as it is on the edge of the town centre but also close to The Abbey Grounds where you could take a relaxing walk after a busy shopping trip. There is also a car park adjacent to the Abbey Grounds, Abbey Car Park.
Current parking charges at the Abbey Car Park increased in April 2010:
Up to 1 hour - £1.30
Up to 2 hours - £2.20
Up to 3 hours - £2.80
Up to 5 hours - £3.70
Up to 10 hours - £6.30
Charges apply 8am to 6pm Monday to Saturday (including public holidays)
Leave the Waterloo Car Park (after paying and displaying of course) and head back towards Dyer Street. As you reach the junction of The Waterloo, London Road, Victoria Road and Dyer Street you will be able to see two of the finest Bed and Breakfast establishments Cirencester has to offer. The Old Brewhouse and The Ivy House. The Old Brewhouse on London Road is a delightful 17th Century town house bed and breakfast full of charm and character, sympathetically restored and refurbished offering high quality accommodation. The Ivy House is an imposing Victorian residence built in 1870, occupying a prominent position within a three-minute walk from the town centre. There are more B&Bs a little further down Victoria Road such as the excellent 'The Leauses' run by Mason and Lizzy.
Anyway, let's go shopping!
Dyer Street
As you head up Dyer Street towards the town centre one of the first shops you will encounter, after first passing the office of The Wilts & Glos Standard, is Gardiner Homecentre at 68/72 Dyer Street. Gardiners claims the title of the Cotswold's biggest homecentre and occupies a large, two storey property with departments including bathroom, kitchen, bedroom, lighting, gardening and general DIY. There are parking spaces at the rear of the store and access to these spaces is via Lewis Lane.
Continue up Dyer Street and you will find the Marks & Spencer 'Simply Food' store. The store opened in 2006 after taking over the premises vacated by the Iceland frozen food shop. Opposite Marks & Spencer you will see Argos, the catalogue shop. There is an alleyway to the right of the Argos store which leads to a small car park which can be used by Argos customer whilst using the store. There is also a newsagents, DVD rental store and Simone's gym on that side of the road.
Next to Marks and Spencer is a small courtyard type area where you can sit and enjoy a coffee and watch the world go by, The courtyard is edged with a small number of shops and businesses including a hair salon, cafe and gallery. Tattinger Marsh moved from one of these shop to premises over the road which were vacated when Adams Childrenswear closed.
As you head towards the Market Place you will pass Nationwide and then Toomers, the pet store, a greeting card shop (Special Occassions) and the offices of Cirencester estate agency, Cain & Fuller.
You are now at the junction of Dyer Street, Market Place and North Way, but before we continue into The Market Place look opposite Cain & Fuller where you will see an archway to The Woolmarket, an small area of shops and businesses including:
Wardrobe – ladies fashion
Crocodile – independent toy shop
Happy Hen House - unique gifts and high quality ladies accessories
Hair & Skin Care House – hairdressers and beauty treatments
Ride 24/7 – Cirencester’s only cycle shop
Bernard Griffiths – hair stylist
Anne Morley Fashions – ladies fashion
Bridal Studio – wedding dresses
ToneZone Music – music shop which opened on 28th March 2009
Café Mosaic – breakfast, coffee, lunch, snacks and afternoon tea
In The Woolmarket you will find a sculpture by Jill Tweed called "The Ram". The sculpture was unveiled in 1997 by local author Joanna Trollope.By the time you have reached the junction of Dyer Street, North Way and The Market Place the impressive site of St John Baptist Church will be in view. The Church dominates the top end of The Market Place and is one of the most impressive "wool church" in the area, if not the country.
The Market Place and The Corn Hall
Head up toward the Church passing Walter Bull & Sons the jewellers, Lock Stock & Barrel, Barclays Bank and The Corn Hall along the way.
The Corn Hall
The Corn Hall has been redevleloped and now is home to a number of outlets such as Made By Bob Deli/Restaurant, Sue Parkinson, Sienna, Hobbs Bakery, Oeno Wine, Wadham Trading, Puffin Bay, Moi, Stuart Wilson Hairdressing and Peony. As part of the redevelopment the Visitor Information Centre was relocated to the Corinium Museum.
Weekly events take place at the Corn Hall:
Wednesdays - Home and Garden Bazaar
Thursdays - Food and Drink Market
Fridays - Antiques Market
Saturdays - Craft Markets
Corn Hall Shops and Retail Outlets
Moi
Moi is a ladies Boutique at the end of the Corn Hall arcade that specialises in designer labels for the discerning shopper. If you don’t want high street fashion and are looking for something a little different this is for you.Run by Liza Bewick and Julie Keech this is their third shop, the others are situated in Nailsworth and Leamington Spa, collections include Armani, Farhi and Day Birger amoungst others.
So if you are looking for a great fitting pair of jeans or a unique piece of Jewellery or that show stopping outfit then this shop is worth a visit.
Made By Bob Deli/Restaurant, Sue Parkinson, Sienna, Hobbs Bakery, Oeno Wine, Wadham Trading, Puffin Bay, Moi, Stuart Wilson Hairdressing and Peony
Coming soon...
Back in the Market Place, you will also find The Fleece Hotel, Cirencester's only town centre 3 star hotel.
At the top end of The Market Place, outside the HSBC bank, you will find yourself at the junction of Cricklade Street, Castle Street and West Market Place.
Let's explore Cricklade Street first.
Cricklade Street
In Cricklade Street you will find a mix of shops and businesses including West Cornwall Pasty Co., New Look, Clinton Cards, Burton menswear, Dorothy Perkins and Millets to name but a few. The closure of Woolworths and Whittards of Chelsea has left a big hole in Cricklade Street shopping. The Woolworths premises remain empty. If In France did take over the Whittard shop, but this has also now closed.A new Body Shop opened in 2008. The Bishops Walk shopping centre also leads off Cricklade Street.
Bishops Walk is a small covered shopping mall home to a number of shops and businesses including Carphone Warehouse, a kitchen and homeware shop, a florist and a toy shop for children.
The first floor of Bishops Walk is occupied by Cirencester's one and only nightclub, The Rock.
Continue down Cricklade Street past Boots, Dorothy Perkins and Burton towards where Cricklade Street has a junction with Ashcroft Road and you will find Witton Recruitment. If you do an about turn and walk back up Cricklade Street (on the left hand side of the road) towards The Market Place you will find Travial, another employment agency dealing with jobs in Cirencester. Continue walking along Cricklade Street past Stead and Simpson (which moved from the Market Place in June 2010), Halfords, the entrance to Bishops Walk and the Waterstones book shop (which changed its name from Ottakar's after the July 2006 takeover by the HMV Group) until you reach The Market Place.
We will now turn left out of Cricklade Street and take a trip down Castle Street.
Castle Street
We will walk down Castle Street on the left hand side towards Tetbury Road and then turn through 180 degrees to return down Castle Street on the right hand side back to The Market Place.
As you enter Castle Street from the Market Place you will notice a Vodafone store. This shop took over unoccupied premises which was left by a travel agent.
As we travel down Castle Street we pass R Scott, a Gentlemans' Outfitters that has been serving Cirencester since 1905. Continue past Concord Foto (a digital camera shop) and you will pass the Clarks shoe shop and the Black Horse public house on your way to WH Smith, a common sight on many high streets across England, but not many will occupy such a picturesque building.
Continue along Castle Street, past White Stuff, and you will discover that the buildings housing shops will change to buildings housing estate agents and restaurants. The first restaurant we will pass is Tatyans, a Chinese Restaurant run by local businessman Tatyan Cheung. As we proceed towards Tetbury Road we will pass a curry house (Raj-doot) and an Italian serving pasta and pizza. The Curryander curry house which stood on the corner of an alleyway that leads down to Tesco's town centre store and a large car park known as Brewery car park has closed and re-opened as a new Chinese restaurant.
Walk a little further down Castle Street and we will reach a lettings agent (Martin & Co.) and an estate egent at the end of the road, the point where we turn around and walk back towards The Market Place.
Walking back down to the Market Place we will pass a number of shops, the Mad Hatter's Wine Bar and McKenzies pub/wine bar. Just before the the Post Office redevelopment is Silver Street (more of which in a minute). The Post Office redevelopment includes shops such as Jack Russell and Lick The Spoon (the Post Office redevelopment means that Castle Street is now linked to Black Jack Street). Further down Castle Street you will find an opticians, cafe and finally the Vodafone store, mentioned earlier, on the corner of Castle Street and the Market Place.
Silver Street is a small side street where you will find GH Knight (stationers - 01285 653635) Moonstruck gift shop (01285 640444), Made, a barbers and a dental surgery among others.
At the bottom of Castle Street (at the junction with Cricklade Street and the Market Place) we will now turn left into West Market Place and then to Black Jack Street.
West Market Place and Black Jack Street
West Market Place and Black Jack Street is possibly the most interesting shopping area in Cirencester. Full of small shops, tempting courtyard areas and the smell of freshly roasting coffee beans from Keith's.
Black Jack Street is a small one-way street where you will find Jesse Smiths butchers among other shops. Black Jack Street now links back to Castle Street thanks to the redevelopment of the old Post Office area.
Further Afield
The Gloucestershire Gun Company
A new Gun and Gunsmithing company has opened in Barnsley - The Gloucestershire Gun and Gunsmithing Company.
Our mission is to deliver excellent customer service to all shooters, whether new to the sport or the more experienced, regardless of budget.
The Gloucestershire Gun and Gunsmithing Company is a team of passionate individuals, who want to be at the forefront of the shooting industry – helping it to grow and develop.
Link: More details about The Gloucestershire Gun Company
Dovecot Workshops
Barnsley Park, Cirencester, GL7 5EG
01285 740 898
Dobbies
The Dobbies garden centre is just a short drive from Cirencester town centre. There is a large car park on-site.
