The soft launch has taken place for the Big Onion in Southport, which aims to offer ‘life-changing’ opportunities for local people.
The new venture is opening soon in the former Crave pizza cafe in the Town Hall Gardens on Lord Street in Southport town centre.
It will enable people operating social enterprises or community initiatives to provide their services from a central location with support from Merseyside Expanding Horizons and without the costs of paying out for commercial high street premises.
The first Big Onion opened at The Strand shopping centre in Bootle and has been a huge success.
Merseyside Expanding Horizons has now been backed by Sefton Council to replicate that success in Southport, with a new pop-up space that will operate until work begins on the £10 million revitalisation of the Town Hall Gardens.
The soft launch was attended by a huge crowd of local people, with guests including Sefton Council Deputy Leader Paulette Lappin; Sefton Council Cabinet Member for Communities and Partnership Engagement Liz Dowd; Sefton Council Chief Executive Phil Porter; Southport MP Patrick Hurley and others.
It is situated next to the life-size crochet Spitfire in the Town Hall Gardens, created by the Southport Hookers, the Royal British, Merseyside Polonia and others, with the local community playing its part to revitalise Lord Street.
The Big Onion is not officially open just yet – the big launch is coming in November when it will open its doors as a space where ideas, people, and projects can thrive.
Thursday night was an opportunity to discover more about what it will bring to Southport.
Speaking at the launch, Big Onion founder Chris Lewis said:
“I am absolutely knocked out by the turnout! It’s great to see so many people here.
“I wanted to say a bit about the project because we think it’s very special.
“We have got a Big Onion space in Bootle Strand, we have been there now for a number of years.
“In addition to redesigning the high street, and bringing independent traders back onto the high street, we are bringing opportunities onto the high street as well.
“Not only are we incubating businesses, we’re working with people to improve their skills, and we’re helping people to find employment and move on with their careers.
“For those of you who have been there, I think you’ll agree it’s a unique space, the first one of its kind, and we did it in Bootle with the support of Sefton Council, which has been fantastic.
“This really came about when I heard there was an opportunity. I spoke with Stephen Watson, Sefton Council’s Executive Director of Regeneration, Economy and Assets. This building was empty at the time.
“Part of the work we do at Merseyside Expanding Horizons is through a contract we have with InvestSefton, we deliver the business start-up support in the borough.
“In the last few years, what we’ve noticed is the number of socially trading organisations in the borough, or community enterprises, or social enterprises, coming through. It’s fantastic.
“The biggest problem those businesses have – well, there are a few. Access to money is one. Contract opportunities, grants, customers and so on. But also finding somewhere to trade from.
“When my Dad bought a house in 1955, he bought a home to live in. He didn’t think about flipping the house, to make money. Property is a commodity now.
“Unfortunately many people are priced out of property, particularly with commercial premises, which can be incredibly expensive.
“So we had an opportunity to do something here.
“The idea was to open a premises for the community, seven days a week, from 9am in the morning to around 7 o’clock or 8 o’clock in the evening, where we can hire it out, at really reduced rates, to organisations which have been priced out of the market elsewhere.
“We are going to use this space here to run art classes, to run exercise classes, to run literacy classes, mother and parent and toddler groups.
“It’s going to be a great space. The support from people has been phenomenal. I have to pay special thanks to Sefton Council. When I had meetings with them, they said – ‘go on then, have a go’.”
Sefton Council Deputy Leader Paulette Lappin said:
“It’s brilliant to see this place full. There is a great opportunity here for people to try and change their lives, or find out what they really want to do.
“I am so pleased that everyone can take full advantage.
“The Big Onion is absolutely great in Bootle and it will be great here in Southport too because it is run by people who actually want to do different things, and work, and be creative.
“In the end, it’s all about you taking control of your lives. It’s all about saying ‘I want to do something for me, and my family, and my life, and I want to change things for me’, and this is what this is all about.”
- For more details about The Big Onion please email Chris Lewis at: hrislewis@expandinghorizons.co.uk
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