Granny Glebe gets funky

‘Granny Glebe gets funky’ might sum up new branding for the Glebe shopping strip. Shopping bags, postcards, badges, a Vespa scooter and advertising will all carry lace doyley and nursery rhyme-inspired themes with a twist. The idea is to reflect the Victorian heritage of the suburb, unique in Sydney.

The campaign, funded by the City of Sydney with a six-figure budget is a first step in resuscitating a shopping strip battered by a year-long upgrade which gave it the grey-granite-and-smartpoles makeover now familiar to many inner suburbs.

But the shopping strip had suffered a series of blows going back ten years, said Paul Angell, president of the Glebe Chamber of Commerce. He was speaking at the launch of the new branding at the AB Hotel last week.

First came the GST, then the Broadway Shopping Centre arrived, drawing customers away with its free parking and causing the closure of fruit and vegetable shops, butchers and the like.

Mr Angell said he had supported amalgamation with the City of Sydney because Leichhardt Council had previously not only neglected Glebe in favour of Leichhardt and Balmain, but imposed parking meters with a two-hour limit.

At the same time, safety and petty crime worsened.

‘If restaurant patrons stayed for dessert, not only did they get booked but they got their car broken into as well,’ he said.

But all that is fading into the past.

Now petty crime is on the decline, thanks to multi-agency co-operation facilitated by Member for Balmain Verity Firth who had special legislation passed. The parking meters have been extended to four hours at night so diners can enjoy their dessert.

And with the upgrade complete, Mr Angells is rallying businesses to get behind the campaign, which was produced by marketing agency Bang.

Shoppers who spend more than $20 at participating outlets can win a Vespa decked out with the new Glebe identity.