Keep up ,A new owner as taken over the Ridings and he is spending a load of cash on the the bottom floor to make it Kid friendly, as well as doing work on the rest So as you say a smart move by the club .Next moan please

Have you ever tried a Happy Meal?

Where exactly would you prefer it.....Post Office Road in Featherstone perhaps, or The Lanes in Castleford ???

Sydney Opera House, perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically............

Am i mistaken, but i seemed to recollect there would be a club retail outlet in the new stand.

That's a good question.
I can't say I've heard that mentioned for a while.

I think the Ridings is a sensible option. Certainly a lot better than being out in any of the grubby streets.

No, not the new stand but it is planned for when the Rollin shack is refurbished. That refurbishment is ear marked for when the new stand is up and running. I can only go by what JM mentioned at the SH meeting last week. There are a number of ideas for what will be the Community Hub. A number of different partners will be involved in the refurbishment and if it does happen, then it will be a valuable asset for both Trinity and the community.
There has to be uncertainty at the moment of what will happen around the ground, the current management have one plan, but a new owner takes over, he may well have different ideas.

Barcelona?

Maybe it would just be better in one of the busier areas of the city centre so that people actually see it. It's all well and good saying that Trinity fans know where it is - fantastic - that's a few thousand people. To the rest of the city we are nearly invisible, and hiding the club shop on a near empty floor in a near empty shopping centre isn't a sensible move for a club which should be looking to get as much visibility in the community as possible.

... where are the busy areas of the City centre?

When we were running three shops, in the Ridings, TW and inside the ground, overall the one in the Ridings was the most successful.

Teall Way is one of the busiest areas for pedestrian traffic (thats why market stall holders are happy with the move to Teall St), areas around cross street, the bull ring, and Trinity Walk too. I went into the Ridings the other day for a cuppa as I'd not been in for a while. Sat in that coffee shop near the Trinity shop for an hour and saw barely a dozen people walk past the shop

Those mentioned aren't that much busier than the Ridings, plus do they have premises available and
in our budget?
There are reportedly plans for the Ridings so maybe the club are being astute by staying?

They really are a lot busier. And as for the plans for the Ridings - there's more chance of the stadium being built at Newcold than the Ridings becoming the most successful shopping centre in the north (the aim of the owners)

The club management are not so naive as to not have put some thought into this!
IF the Ridings shop wasn't a viable, profitable location, would they have extended the lease? I think not!
I personally think it's a cracking location and despite what the OP thinks, at weekends in particular, hundreds , if not thousands of non Trinity supporters walk past it.
I just don't get this bashing the club management at, almost literally, everything they do,

Maybe, it's low rent and a presence in the city centre ?
We did have a shop in Trinity walk, which probably is a better spot but, it would be massively more expensive.
Worth noting that, the club went bust not so long after that.

The Ridings is central and easy enough for people to get to, job done.

It used to be so, if there are plans for it, why shouldn't it be again?

If the new owners of the Ridings can breathe some life into the Ridings, renewing the lease there could be a master stroke

Almost went bust, not quite.

Although not a major contributing factor, paying two lots of rental didn't help.

I do believe though that Jimmy and Andrew wanted the TW one to work, lets face it, the centre was new, opened around a similar time to when AG took over, so there will have been footfall. It also had quite a bit of room outside, useful for any events.

The club even used to advertise on the big electronic screen, even showing highlight reels of games..

Going back to the space outside, I recall the shirt launch back in 2012, ahead of the 2013 season. It was held on a Saturday morning, late morning, quite a busy time for Saturday shoppers, they had a stage outside, and a makeshift home & away dressing room, and both shirts were launched the same day, with so many players in the home, and so many in the away.

If I recall too, Phil hosted it all.

It was a great day, attracted a lot of people, the shop was very busy.

Could that be emulated in the Ridings?

I think a reason why it was more successful over in the Ridings is that people knew where it was, and there are a lot of people that don't like change.

Think it helps that you can go in the shop ,and the staff talk to you in a friendly way ,and they know your names.Wish a lot more places had that attitude ,not a case of take it or leave it

Sorry, almost went bust

you take the point though.
Under the Glover regime, there was a fair amount of effort put in to increase the clubs profile and increase attendances, including the additional shop in Trinity Walk.
On the back of cheap season tickets there was an increase in attendances, although due to results these faded somewhat and there was the introduction of the 1873 lottery, which remains a positive.
I agree about the shirt launch event and hopefully, this kind of thing could be resurrected at some point ?

Agreed, the staff in the shop are excellent.
Friendly and helpful

A pleasure visiting the shop with very friendly staff who are extremely helpful.

Agree, the staff have always been good when i've been in. They seem knowledgeable and have a genuine interest in the club.