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Hobdays Pet Shop (Coventry)
by xxfoxyredxx
I have 2 lovely Syrian hamsters (Winifred and Englebert) and a wonderful half ragdoll cat called Myrtle Rose. As a single woman I dote on my animals and adore spoiling them as well as making sure all their needs are met. I'd would actually love to sit down and work out how much I have spent on them over the past 3 years and I am a source ... of a good belly laugh for alot of people as I am so dotty on them lol!
I buy them all alot of toys, the hamsters have a ham track, fancy running balls, my cat has a play centre for cats and even a coat, the list is endless and I really don't care how much I spend on them and believe in spoiling our pets as much as we can, they deserve it after-all!
I spend alot of time looking in supermarkets at stuff and love a wander around Pets At Home and if I ever see a pet shop I can't keep walking past it and have to have a nosey inside.
The Place:
Hobdays Pet Shop
289 Walsgrave Road
Coventry
CV2 4BE
Telephone Number: 02476457339
The store is on the busy Walsgrave Road in Coventry and the area is known as Ball Hill and its alongside lots of other shops in the area as it is a busy shopping area with lots of independent shops likes this as well as plenty of Cafes, Restaunts, Pubs, Banks and a couple of Supermarkets. There are lots of bus routes, a taxi rank close by however parking isn't so simple in this area though there is a very cheap and not generally ever very busy car park about 5 minutes away.
The shop itself is a small shop and there is stock displayed outside so its instantly recognizable as a pet shop. When you walk in you get greeted by two beautiful resident cats that talking to the shop owner the other day told me have been there with him for years, friendly little things they are and I thought it was just really lovely them wondering about!
This store is packed and I mean packed up to the ceiling with anything you could possible want from a baby mouse to a rabbit hutch!
The only problem with the store I had was the fact that there was little organisation to the display and things seemed randomly put out however I can see the point of that, it really does get you mooching about and the staff allow you to browse with no annoyance and do ask if your ok. Up some steps to the back of the store there is livestock such as mice and hamsters, birds and fish, a mouse costs about £8.00, I know because I was looking at them and the livestock, to me looked healthy, happy enough, clean and contented and I liked the fact that they were at the back of the store away from the front and droughts and the hustle and bustle because just a couple of people in the store makes it feel overcrowded due to the lack of spacem and it being a small sop to start with!
I did think that the prices instore were rather high however and you have to remember that this is a small local pet store and there is no larger place in the area to get pet supplies from. They sell foods for all animals, toys, bedding including baskets, treatments including flea and worm treatments for lots of animals. The rabbit hutches ranged in prices from £30.00 and looked good quality and value for money.
My Opinion:
Although the store is cramped its like an emporium for pets where if you can't find something that you need the possibility is you don't actually need it. Yes its a bit more pricey than I'm used to however what you do get is really knowledgeable staff and they can get in whatever you want as well if you ask them to get something for you and they will go out of their way to serve your needs if they can. Years ago my mum took our two Yorkshire Terriers in here and they got measured for coats properly, there's only a couple of staff ever in here including the owner but they really do know everything there is to know about pets and their needs!
Whilst I was in there I bought some cat shampoo for about three quid, a fluffy toy mouse for 70p and a pack hamster chocolates for 75p however unless I am in the area and really need something or I am looking for anything in particular I wouldn't go out of my way to make a trip here but that's only due to the higher than I'm used to prices and the things I may want to look at taking me so much time to find!
An interesting little pet shop though!
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Lakeside Village (Doncaster)
by NUDUL
I know Lakeside Village shopping centre in Doncaster very well as my husband worked there for a good four years. It is a clean, well laid out, shopping centre which has a number of outlet stores arranged around a U shape. There are some small coffee shops, a Pizza Hut, KFC and McDonalds as well as a Harvester Pub where you can purchase ... meals. The shops included are 'The Works', 'Toys R Us', 'Cotton Traders', 'Next', 'Marks and Spencer's', there are jewellery stores, lingerie stores, 'Cadbury's' and 'Thortons' stores, shoe stores including 'Clarkes' and other little stores that are nice to pop in and look around. In total there are around twenty-five stores.
The shopping outlet is very easily accessible from either Doncaster town centre or junction three off the M18. It is close by to Doncaster Race Course, Doncaster Rovers Football Club and has a number of supermarkets very close by too. There are currently some road works as Doncaster council are widening the roads and making the layout better into and around the outlet and to the motorway.
There are also basic facilities at the outlet. There is an indoor and outdoor play area, the indoor one is soft play with a ball pool, disabled toilets as well as men's and women's facilities. The women's facilities have baby changing facilities within and there are separate ones that can be accessed by contacting the facilities manager. There are two free cash points in the facilities area, as well as travel information and local tourist information. In the outdoor area there is some seating for the jacket potato stall and the doughnut stall, other than that, there are benches dotted around the area.
The outlet has ample free parking for cars, parent and child, and disabled people. There is also extra parking closer to Toy's R Us and there is a large lake that is nice to walk around with your dog or children. It is around 2 miles long and you can even walk onto the peninsular in the lake.
Lakeside is nice for a walk around in the afternoon, it opens 10 - 6 Monday through Saturday, except Thursdays is late closing and the outlet is open until 8pm. On Sunday the stores are open either 10.30-4.30 or 11 - 5. However, there isn't enough to do for a full day.
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Merton Abbey Mills (London)
by Essexgirl2006
Abbey Mills is a crafts and food 'village' in the London Borough of Merton in South West London. I have a number of friends in the area, and when visiting at weekends we have sometimes come here for a browse and a bite to eat. The place (unsurprisingly according to its name) is the site of an old mill, one of many water mills formerly in ... this area, of which only a handful survive. The one here is in working order, although there have been other mills prior to this. The Arts & Crafts textile designer, William Morris, printed his fabrics here and it was also formerly used by Liberty of London, who used to print many of their famous fabrics here.
There are a number of shops here, but never as many as I think there should be. Some units appear to have been converted to office/studio space. I have enjoyed browsing in Cocoon Butterfly a little oriental fashion and craft shop where I recently purchased a pretty scarf for £12. There is also a small craft shop and market stalls, these change, and I have found them to be a bit hit and miss if I am honest, and never that many. As my local friends has said before "I always think there is more here than there actually is". There is also Charlie's Rock Shop is you are interested in stones in jewellery and decorative gifts.
Food and drink wise there is the William Morris Pub, as well as a number of restaurants such as Mamma Rosa's, a large but average Italian restaurant, some little casual food units offering Chinese, Caribbean or Brazilian food, and a nice, but small Thai restaurant. There are often tables outside if the weather is fine. Last time I was there was a very hot September Sunday afternoon and the dedicated ice cream shop was shut, which seemed a bit bizarre. There is a small theatre here, I have not visited it but I understand it runs children's theatre workshops as well as hosting live music during the summer.
Whilst I love the idea of Abbey Mills, it isn't as good as I think it could be, and I would like to see more craft shops, and indeed more shops open. There is a lot of potential here and it is a shame that it doesn't seem to get that busy.
The Mills are within walking distance of Colliers Wood tube station (Northern Line) and there is free parking nearby. There are also some pretty riverside areas which you can walk through if you are so inclined, which I do recommend.
Merton Abbey Mills
Merantun Way
Wimbledon SW19 2RD
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