INDEPENDENT traders across the Vale – including Barry and Penarth – have joined forces to create a shop local calendar.

The 2022 calendar aims to encourage people to support their high street this year and follows on from a Shop Local This Christmas song and video featuring Vale traders which was released last month.

Calendars are being given out for free by high street traders in Barry, Penarth, Cowbridge and Llantwit Major.

They feature staff members from:

  • Awsome.Wales and Wild Botanic in Barry;
  • Hello Gorgeous, Rowley’s the Jewellers, Arbuthnot Opticians, and The Danish Bakery: Brød in Penarth;
  • Pastures Green and Nickleby’s Book Store in Llantwit Major,
  • Awesome.Wales, Fablas Ice Cream, the Pencil Case, Thornbush Hill, and The Bear Hotel in Cowbridge.

This is part of a major shop local campaign which is jointly funded through the Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns initiative and Covid Recovery Review funding and the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

The campaign launched in 2020 after the Vale of Glamorgan Council found that 55 percent of businesses had been seriously impacted by the Covid pandemic – more than half of businesses they spoke with believed their high street won’t recover.

Recent projects within the shop local campaign include the Christmas song, with Santa’s post offices set-up in Cowbridge and Barry during the festive season to encourage families onto the high street.

Deputy leader and cabinet member for education and regeneration, Lis Burnett, said: “The coronavirus pandemic has had a significant impact on all our lives, but for our nation’s high streets it has been devastating.

“Independently run businesses are completely reliant on the support of local residents in order to survive.

“This is why we saw such a huge effort during this Christmas campaign, as it was vital for the festive period to be a success for local traders. It has been great to see traders and residents joining in and having fun this Christmas.

“As we enter the new year and continue to face the uncertainties of the ongoing pandemic, we encourage everyone to continue doing their bit to support businesses in Cowbridge, Barry, Penarth and Llantwit Major throughout 2022.”