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com/WalesOnline WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2018  south wales echo  5

News
Popular vinyl warehouse
While many beggars like this are passive, business
owners in Cardiff claim they have been faced with
both verbal and physical threats from others

clearance sale to return

A MASSIVE vinyl warehouse
clearance sale was so successful
that it’s returning next
month.
Record collectors, vinyl enthusiasts,
and music fans queued from the early
hours of the morning over the
weekend for the chance to pick up
bargains and rare finds at what’s
thought to have been the largest vinyl
record warehouse clearance sale ever
seen in Wales.
Thousands of items were up for
grabs at the event in Barry for
knockdown prices – from every music
genre imaginable.
The sale signalled a scaling down of
the huge record dealing business
originally set up by Claire Williams
and Mark Owen more than eight years
ago.
The pair formerly ran Retro-Vibe
Music from the warehouse shop in
Vere Street in Barry, before opening a
larger shop in High Street, Cardiff in
2015. The shop stayed open for a
couple of years before the
pair decided to scale down the
business.
Ms Williams admitted that not
everybody could fit into the
warehouse shop and the space
wasn’t fully opened because
of health and safety issues,
with thousands more vinyl albums,
12” and 7” singles still needing to be
sold.
Nevertheless, she said the day was
a huge success and thanked
everybody who turned out.
She said: “We just wanted to say a
massive thank you to everyone who
queued up, crate dug until they could
no more and most importantly had a
great time and made the day a great
success.”
The massive vinyl record
warehouse clearance takes place at
Retro-Vibe Music on Saturday,
December 8 and Sunday, December 9,
from 8am, at Retro-Vibe, 8A Vere
Street, Barry, CF63 2HX.

Limited
THE BIG
TILE SALE
Offer

WHILE STOCKS LAST

“We get tarred with the same
brush but people won’t trust us. One
lady said to me before that a person
she gave money to was later on the
same bus as her. She watched him
get off the bus and open their door.”
Derrick said he refuses to beg.
He said: “Most homeless people
keep themselves to themselves. I’ve
seen a few people walk around and I
do find it quite intrusive but it’s just
the odd few. It’s just getting blown
out of proportion. The police just
don’t want any homeless in Cardiff –
they’re just using ‘aggressive beg-
ging’ as an excuse.”
For 30-year-old rough sleeper Pat-
rick problems also arise over the
definition of “aggressive begging”.
After receiving a section 35 notice
he will join others in a similar situa-
tion in areas such as Albany Road
until the 48-hour period is over.
Patrick, who has been homeless
for 12 months, said: “What is ‘aggres-
sive begging’? We don’t know. They
think ‘aggressive begging’ is just ask-
ing. If I ask, ‘Hey Miss can I have a
penny?’ is that aggressive begging?
You might not find it intimidating
but another person might. I think it’s
pathetic – they give out section 35
notices and people move out and
will congregate on other roads.
“There’s no-where to go. You can’t
go to the museum or Cathays Park as
the moment there is more than four
or you they will move you on. People
wonder why there’s problems on
City Road or Albany Road but it’s a
vicious circle.”
■■What are homeless charities
saying?
The Wallich has said are unaware
of any data which shows an increase
in “aggressive begging” in Cardiff.
Instead they have criticised the
“criminalisation” of homelessness
and “already vulnerable people.
Lindsay Cordery-Bruce, chief
executive of The Wallich, said: “We
are unaware of any data that demon-
strates evidence of, or an increase in,
aggressive begging in Cardiff.
“The public, and businesses will
have seen, and we have evidence to
show, that there has been an increase
in rough sleeping. We believe the two
issues are often unfairly linked. We
are supportive of businesses, agen-
cies, charities and public services
coming together to tackle social
issues. Our vision is to develop a
compassionate city, where people
who are excluded from society can
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Richard Edwards, chief executive
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