A GROUP of south Manchester residents want to establish a local co-operative they hope will become the centre of their community.

Their aim is to take over and expand a fruit, veg and health food shop trading as Village Stores on Barlow Road, Levenshulme which has become increasingly valued by local people since it began trading three years ago.

Its owner, Ibrahim al-Caddy is 62 and wants to spend more time with this wife, 11-year-old-son and daughter, 9, but is keen to see traditions of his store continued.

Ibrahim said: “Apart from the fruit and veg, I sell plants and shrubs, health foods, fair trade goods and food to suit vegetarians and vegans. It’s getting too much for me but I would not like to see the community, who have supported me so well, being denied this service in the future.”

Ibrahim, a Muslim whose grandparents came to the UK from the Middle East early last century, came to Manchester three years ago after running a cycle shop near Portsmouth.

He said: “At first I was looking for a shop to sell imported alcohol-free perfumes. An estate agent put me on to this premises on Barlow Road. At first I though it was too big but they got me a mortgage.

“At first I sold simple fruit and veg but then customers started asking for things like soya milk so I branched out into health foods and other items. Now I would like to see the co-operative carry the work on.”

One of the co-op organisers, trainee designer Lucy Lee, 23, said she hoped the 20 other local people involved in the project could work something out with Ibrahim.

She said: “We obviously want to keep his work going but there’s loads of spare space here with three empty rooms of the first floor and extensive cellars.

“We have ideas for a cafe, book shop, and rooms for community activities, it could become a thriving centre serving as a focus for the local community.”

If the co-op gets off the ground history would repeat itself. Early in the 20th century it was a traditional co-op offering the ‘divi’ - a dividend -  to local shoppers. Our photograph (above) shows the staff outside in 1937.

Co-operative organisers are holding a meeting to launch the project at the Bluebell pub on Barlow Road on Monday, February 23 at 8pm. All are welcome.

If you want to help with the project more information can be obtained at thevillageposse@yahoo. co.uk or by ringing 07855 217 308.

A GROUP of toyshop lovers have set themselves the target of raising £30,000 by the end of the month to take over a closed-down store.

Chorlton’s Busy Bee shut its doors at the end of January, when owner Mary O’Mahoney retired after nearly 25 years of running the shop.

Now a group of parents and Chorlton residents have said forget the credit crunch and got together to form a co-operative in the hope of refitting and re-opening the shop, which they say is a much-loved institution.

Mum-of-three and part-time teacher Rachel Muter is one of those determined to get the Wilbraham Road shop up and running again.

She said: “It’s been such a fantastic shop for so long and it’s part of the heritage of Chorlton.

“It’s like an adventure for children going in, because the place has always been packed from floor to ceiling with stuff.

“You could get little pocket-money toys, bigger gifts, jigsaws, and craft items and bits for dressing up.

“There was such a variety in such a tiny place, but it was always really exciting, and we want that to continue.”

Rachel lives on Brantingham Road, Chorlton, with her partner, Nick Money, and their three children, George, nine, Ethan, seven, and Kipp, five.

She, along with her friend, James Hillon, 33, an insurance underwriter who lives on Oswald Road with his wife Victoria and two children, met with around 20 other parents and residents at Chorlton Library to discuss a way forward.

Rachel, a part-time dance and drama teacher who works in Warrington, said: “The feeling was that it would definitely be worthwhile to get the shop going again and that we’d need about £30,000 for things like a refit of the premises, buying the name and new stock, rent, and for staff wages to start.

“The exact details have still be worked out, but we’re looking to get people on board to invest. Some might want to be silent partners and some want to be directly involved.

“We aim to set up a committee and then of course, we’d have to decide on a manager and staff.”

She added: “We want to increase the turn-over of the shop, and we believe that will come partly through extending the age range.

“At the moment, most of the toys are for children up to seven-year-olds, but we’d like to increase that to age 11, and I’ve already been going to toy fairs to make contact with suppliers.

“But we also want to retain the ethos of Busy Bee being a friendly, independent shop. You could go in and Mary and the staff would advise you on toys and be happy to chat to you. We want to keep that personal touch. We’re not phased by the credit crunch because the thing with a co-operative is that the risk is spread over many people. We also think that with having local ownership, it will encourage local people to shop there. Also, we think that opening up now is a risk worth taking.”

Anyone wanting to get involved with the co-operative, should email busybeetoys@rocketmail.com.