Wistanstow Village Shop (The Old Smithy Community Village Shop)
The Smithy is Wistanstow’s thriving Community Shop. Although small - a renovated blacksmith’s premises little more than the size of a shed – we stock all the basics from milk, bread, eggs, fruit and vegetables to everyday groceries, sweets, and so much more.
The shop is volunteer led and run and very much a meeting place and community information centre as well as a shop. So we have a noticeboard for events, adverts and services and we also sell tickets for local events, such as the annual parish pantomime and charity disco.
The shop has been open since 2000 and we’ve created a cosy place where people can stop to chat or browse the noticeboards. We’re normally open 8.45-11 and 2.45-5, Monday to Friday, but volunteers are always prepared to do a bit extra so that we can open to support community events such as the annual bike show, the school plant sale and the annual fete.
With a very good mix of young, old, male and female staff you can join in a wide spectrum of conversational topics if you have the time to spare; but the highlight of the day is watching quite small children choosing and counting out their sweets – its amazing how quickly arithmetic improves and there are quite a few negotiating skills being learned along the way!!
What’s so special about us? Everyone who works in the shop is a volunteer who wants to make sure that others can benefit from a truly local shop – we even stock request items for regular customers and we help other local people too by selling their products and garden produce.
We sell just about everything - such as milk, local bread and free-range eggs, butter, cheese, juices, fruit and vegetables, tinned, packaged and frozen foods, tea, coffee, cereals, baking ingredients and a wide range of medicinal and household goods as well as stationery and stamps. We’re only small but we’re stacked with food, drinks, cards, gifts, sweets and we even manage to provide vegetarian, organic, fairtrade and eco-products too. Plus locally made produce such as Mr Cox’s honey, Ludlow Jam Pan jams and pickles, Carys cakes and Milly’s fantastic range of ice-creams. Oh and the bread is made locally too – from Mr Bun and Prices bakeries. And cards, postcards, photographs and pictures by local artists. We also have local interest books on sale as well as second hand paperbacks.
We’re always on the lookout for other local craft items.