The bustle is back for high street ... but new store won't take cash

SOME BRAND CARD-ONLY POLICY AS 'DISCRIMINATION'

- By ANDREW FORGRAVE Countryside and Tourism Editor

A FORMER Debenhams store in Gwynedd was heaving on the day it reopened.

Long queues built up at tills as Bangor's bargain hunters clutched cut-price Amazon returns, discounted clothing and ultra-cheap Chinese goods.

But while many were delighted to see some life breathed back into the city's moribund High Street, the new Trade Outlet store and its Frugal clothing range also raised some uncomfortable truths about modern shopping.

Many of those hoping to visit the store were dismayed to discover it doesn't accept cash. In an area with a rising older population, and in a city with pockets of deprivation among the highest in Wales, cash remains king for many shoppers.

Online, one man labelled the store's stance as "discrimination". A Caernarfon woman insisted she won't shop there out of principle. A Criccieth resident added: "No cash? I will not be going, it's a disgrace." A Bangor woman agreed: "It is not inclusive at all - lots of elderly people with small pensions, mums on a low income and many others prefer to use cash for obvious reasons."

Trade Outlet's Bangor store is the ninth in a rapidly growing operation across North Wales and northwest England - it also has a retail presence in Wrexham, Saltney and Chester Gates Business Park.