Bhavna Patel and her husband Mayur
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A DEDICATED newsagent couple are saying farewell to their shop after 49 years serving the community with everything they need from newspapers to other necessities.
Fleet News, on the corner of Cressy Road and Fleet Road, was opened in 1976 by Mayur Patel’s father after he came to the UK from Uganda, with their family originally being from India.
Mayur started working in the shop at the time aged 17, taking on the business from his father in 1997 with his wife Bhavna Patel.
They lived above the well-known, small newsagent for nearly 35 years with their two children and family before moving out to Kingsbury in 2010.
Fleet News will remain a newsagent, but Mr and Ms Patel said it was “time to go”, while admitting they will “miss the people the most”.
Mr Patel said: “The area was totally different back then – it was a different generation. We have very few customers who still come in from that time, counting by fingers, the area has changed and people have downgraded. It’s our time to go.
“We will miss the people the most – we talk to countless people every day. We will miss the day-to-day interactions with customers. We’ve got to know people very well here and have loyal customers.
“The last 10 to 15 years the competition has started with supermarkets, and in the last five years, with online shopping, it has affected things that we do here. With our retirement we plan to rest for some months and then after that try and do some voluntary work.
Bhavna and Mayur in their early days running the shop
“We will particularly miss the older generation. In the mornings, in the old days I remember people used to come down and chat because they were lonely. A lot of old people have passed away living around here and we miss them. Both our kids were born in the area at the Royal Free, so we have a connection to the area and know it well. Our daughter likes to work in the shop sometimes, she’s a chatter and she remembers everyone’s names.
“I still go by the old ways: we don’t have a computer here or anything, we use a normal till and we rely on the old ways. Before we never even used to have a till, it was just a draw, with coins and money in it.
“I am sad to leave – it’s hard to let go but we don’t have a choice. It’s the right time. I used to love running the shop but the last five years have been harder, customer-wise, it’s not as friendly as it used to be.”
Ms Patel said they are one of the oldest business owners in the street to go.
She added: “Some customers, we’d recognise them from when they were children and used to go to Fleet School, and now they come in as adults, shocked that we still remember them. The time has flown by, it’s gone so fast. When you think about it in that way you realise how much time has passed but it all feels so quick.”
Fleet News
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