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'Cutting edge' centre marks 40th birthday

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The city's Haymarket shopping centre is marking the 40th anniversary of its grand opening today.

On June 4, 1973, the £5 million centre opened its doors, bringing to Leicester the modern retail experience, complete with air conditioning and piped music.

Leicester's Lord Mayor, Arnold Wakefield, opened the centre, with its 75 shops designed for the "motorist shopper".

Among the stores were Littlewoods, Lord John of Carnaby Street and clothes store Chicks, which advertised itself as "one of London's most groovy boutiques".

Others included C&A, BHS, Swiss Cottage, Bobby Cousins, George Oliver Footwear and Mac Fisheries.

Four decades on, the anniversary will be marked by an exhibition looking back at 40 years of memories.

A display of photographs and memorabilia begins today on the upper level of the shopping centre.

As well as press cuttings and pictures, the exhibition will expand to include memories of great days out at the centre, contributed by shoppers while the exhibition continues throughout June.

Centre manager Amanda Phillips said: "It has been very interesting looking at old photographs of the Haymarket shopping centre and seeing how it has changed over time.

"There have been a lot of changes to the centre over the years, not least the installation of the glass roof, and it was particularly nice to see the different Christmas decorations over the years.

"Having the Haymarket shoppers contribute their own memories and stories has also brought a human touch to the exhibition."

City mayor Peter Soulsby is due to open the exhibition today.

He said: "I remember before the Haymarket shopping centre opened, going into the car park and peeping through the hoardings at all the glass and marble.

"It was something Leicester had never seen before and, as a shopping centre, it's still very important to our city centre today."

He said there had been mixed opinions about the new shopping centre because of the many old buildings demolished to make way for it. He said: "Leicester had to modernise but some did feel it was too much and there were buildings demolished to make way for it that it would probably be considered important to preserve now.

"It was a time when much was being lost to make way for cars as well."

Max Boden, policy manager at the Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce, said the Haymarket continued to be an important asset for Leicester.

He said: "It was cutting edge at the time, built at the heart of the city near the Clocktower and market.

"It's held its own and that speaks volumes for the continued commitment of the owners.

"It's difficult with all the changes in architectural fashions to keep a successful shopping centre going but the Haymarket centre is still full of good brands.

"It will be interesting to see what the next 40 years bring."


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