Two Nailsea businesses are about to move into Crown Glass Shopping Centre giving a welcome boost to the rundown end of Clevedon Walk.

School Togs which has been trading at 110 High Street for 20 years is moving into the old betting shop and Nailsea Cycles is moving next door into the former bathroom showroom.

Both businesses are looking forward to having more space to display their goods and stock a larger range of goods.

School Togs owner Mark Gibbard said: “As our lease was up on our current premises on the corner of the Link Road we are taking the opportunity to move into the heart of the shopping centre.”

School Togs will close on Friday, May 22, and reopen on Tuesday, May 26, at the former William Hill retail unit at 10 Clevedon Walk.

The parent’s emporium has been selling scout, guides and school uniforms, wet weather, sports and leisure wear and accessories for children for two decades.

Mark added that the new School Togs will also stock a limited range of shoes including wellington and football boots and perhaps party and school shoes.

Nailsea Cycles marked its 20th anniversary at 132A High Street by packing up ready for its move to the old Room by Roome showroom at 3 Clevedon Walk.

Owner Austin Amford says he will be joined in the new venue by his son Joe who will add a Gadget Lounge.

Austin will manage the bike sales and repairs side of the business and says given the enthusiasm for electric bikes will consider adding this to his range while Joe will concentrate on geeky mechanical and electronic bits and pieces from novelty games to miniature robots for all ages. 

Costa Coffee and the successful Win-a-Shop entrepreneurs Lorna Dukes and Melina Snell with Young Possum's Imaginarium are also set to open this summer at Colliers Walk.

It is anticipated that Young Possum’s Imaginarium will be launched in mid-June.

Costa Coffee spokesman Kerry Parkin said: “We are really looking forward to opening a new store in Nailsea and bringing 8-10 new jobs to the local area. 

“As with all our new store openings we will do all that we can to integrate ourselves with the local community, getting involved with events; providing the store as a meeting place and helping with fundraising.”

Crown Glass Shopping Centre has a total of 160,000 sq ft of retail, office and residential space.

The owners of the shopping precinct have plans to revamp the area with a new children’s play area as part of a £10 million regeneration of the town centre.

But it all hinges on the controversial Lidl supermarket scheme getting the go-ahead to build on park of the car park.

Crown Glass Shopping Centre manager Charlotte Jarrett said: “It is reassuring to see that the shopping centre is being recognised as a strong commercial location for both national brands and local specialists.

 “Our landlords, Ellandi, have a long term strategy to enhance the centre and this mixture of high quality and specialty shopping provides an attractive community shopping environment for loyal and new visitors to the scheme.” 

Theses lettings mean that only four shop units remain unlet at the Crown Glass Shopping Centre demonstrating level of occupancy well above the UK national average. 

Landlords Ellandi have also invested over £500,000 in the refurbishment of previously unlet offices - Sycamore House is currently under offer to the Churchill Retirement Fund and Wessex Water have recently moved into the high quality suite at 21 Somerset Square.

Construction is under way in other parts of the shopping centre converting second floor redundant office space into apartments.

While the town centre shopping precinct still has some empty units and spare office space The Arcade which covers 67-69 High Street is on the market for £725,000.

Built in the 1980s it has four shops with frontages on the High Street and an undercover walkway with a further four retail units as well as what was Nailsea's only nightclub the infamous Decade on the upper floor.