Q: Could you tell me your first memory related to Ladypool Road?

A: Right erm, I’ll just give you a bit of background really that we arrived in this country in 1966 and the reason I remember it so well is that England had won the World Cup, football world cup. And erm, so there was a whole kind of array of people celebrating and stuff, but in my particular mind it was just we started off living in Aston and there weren’t that many places to go and actually buy Asian food and Asian fabrics and stuff. So Ladypool Road for me was a place where we visited to get all of these items. Erm…. and my memory of that is that it was a place that wasn’t….. was quite derelict, it wasn’t you know an amazing place to look at visually. Erm… it had a number of shops that were quite close together, erm and it’s not as long as it, you know the shopping area isn’t as long as it is now. The key shops that were there in my memory were the erm the fabric shops, and in particular the shop is still there that I remember it was where you buy your saucepans, erm it’s a hardware shop, on the corner and then, you know the groceries in between, in between those shops really.

Q: Could you tell me a little bit about your career as a fashion designer and how that links with your shopping in Ladypool Road?

A: Erm I think coming from an Asian background, erm I was always taught by my Mum to never have idle hands, so I’d always be doing rug making or knitting or some kind of textile work and this interest kind of led on when I was very lucky to be able to go to college and study fashion design and then whilst I was in my final year, a whole group of us went for an interview, erm it was fashion house called Larose Limited and I was lucky to be able to…erm secure a position as a fashion designer and erm….so I used to go to college one day a week and then work with this company the rest of the week and that interest purely was because I enjoyed looking at fabrics I really loved textiles and making things. So my kind of early exposure by my Mum had actually created a career for me.

Q: How has the look of the road changed today do you feel?

A: When I first remember coming to Ladypool Road it was, you know it wasn’t as long. You know the number of shops weren’t as many, erm and they were quite derelict I mean when you went into a fabric shop, when you walked in, there would be rolls and rolls of fabrics and erm you didn’t have the luxury of everything displayed, erm so when you wanted to look at something you had go through, you know numerous fabrics and er…, but what you did, you know what the shop owners did do was to kinda say ‘these are our latest erm stock,’ but in my fashion design role I loved actually mooching and finding pieces that you know I could create something from and I think the choices of being able to get such luxurious fabrics and I think the key thing was you could get them at such reasonable prices, it’s something, you know even today I still tend to do.

Q: Why did you shop in Ladypool Road for your fabric? What attracted you?

A: I think it was firstly the choices because you could go to three of four shops, together in one area and erm also that they didn’t all stock the same, the same stock from the same manufacturer. So it was a choices but I think overall it was knowing that erm, you know that I knew the people, so the relationship was important erm and if that I needed to I didn’t have to pay up front, I could have the option of paying, you know little amounts off. They would keep a little book and you could pay it off each time, each week and it, ya know they kind of really trusted you with that.

Q: Have you seen Ladypool change? In your opinion has it developed?

A: It has developed because it’s a lot longer now and it has so many takeaways and cake shops, which seems to be a really good fad at the moment. So a place where families can go and now you can get erm some really nice ready to wear erm fabr…sorry suits. And I think the choices is fast and I think the key thing that I remember is that, is that the prices have changed so much so that, you know, in my time I remember everything was like, was like a bit out of your reach and I don’t know that’s because we’re more affluent now and our spending power is much greater.

Q: Do you still shop in Ladypool Road now?

A: I do for particular erm occasions. I have a wedding coming up so I’ll definitely; it’s my first port of call, because of the variety of not only ready to made wear but also you know to get all the accessories, to be able to get my shoes to match my bangles erm that I can go to one area and try and get everything together.

Q: If Ladypool Road did not exist how do you fell that would affect society?
A: I think that if it didn’t exist I think people wouldn’t have that experience of the Asian culture and I think that, I know that lots of people go down there for it’s food and especially it’s balti’s. So That’s one thing they would really have missed out on but I think there’s a much wider experience of actually the sQl, the tastes, which has become so common and you know like I said before that erm ,when we used to come to Ladypool Road, we used to get our groceries because you couldn’t get them anywhere else and now people have such exposure to even what an aubergine looks like, even garlic and ginger, they seem to be every day ingredients in you know, in everybody’s erm….cooking. So it’s become a common place, but I think you know, you know everything has a point of where it starts from, radiates from and I think that’s one of the areas it has done so.

Q: Could you explain about the community and the people that owned and worked in the shops when you used to shop there? What they were like towards you?

A: I think that the first thing I always remember was that there was always erm… you know males that owned the shop and it’d be there wives or their sister in laws or some member of the family that would actually be around and I think it was place where you could go and catch up on your latest news, know what people were up to, you know comments about what’s going on in your particular culture erm and you know I remember there was a whole issue around, about Sikhs not being able to wear their turbans if they were riding, you know, the motorbikes and stuff. So it was a place where you could just go and have a chat, find out what everybody else was doing and also it was, for me, to experience erm, what other families were doing and….and…. and think Oh that’s good such and such is doing that and in my particular case that erm… slightly different coming from East Africa, that I was aloud to go to college and stuff and I know that quite a lot of the girls weren’t able to do that?

Q: In your opinion could you explain the role of women in the shops in Ladypool Road back when you used to shop there?

A: I think there roles were to obviously serve and provide a point of where you could exchange ideas erm and even like oh this is the latest suits so you know what the latest fashions were. So they kind of, you know made you aware of them and obviously sign post you to other services as well which I thought was, you know good at the time. So if somebody knows somebody else who’s a solicitor or you needed their services they would sign post you to that.

Q: Did you stay in contact with any of the people from Ladypool Road?

A: It’s very difficult because we’re looking at now the third generation, so haven’t be able to keep in contact erm but, you know I go back and visit but you see kind of the third generation. So I think because I’ve moved out of the vicinity erm I don’t really have those relationships.

Q: If you could sum up Ladypool Road in a sentence what would you say?

A: It has a very strong and vibrant character.

Q: Do you feel that women in today’s society have an important input into the development of Ladypool Road and the shops that are situated there?

A: I think that women 52…..women are 52% of the population so they should have a much wider say in what happens in their locality and I’m a great believer that erm that they have an important role in shaping what happens to an area that they are part of.

Q: Do you feel the role of women today has increased in the shops, if you go round Ladypool Road.

A: I think they do actually because I see more and more erm shops that are opened by women, even though they’re in the kind of beauty area, erm you see a lot more of them and there’s more opportunities for them to do that but again I think it depends on which part of erm…erm… you know what your ethnic origin is, that some are far erm… far able to erm grow their businesses or start their businesses than others but there is such a wider opportunity for them?

Q: Would you say the ethnic diversity of the road has changed, erm over the years that you have shopped there?

A: I absolutely think so. I think that you know it represents the migrations of the various communities that have actually come into the area, so you know. Erm you would have like a Polish shop that would sell like Polish wear because that’s another new community we’re having, so it does and I think that erm you know, people will always gravitate to an area that they feel represents them.

Q: Super thank you for your time A: and telling us your story. Just to reiterate that you are happy to make this recording available for public use.

A: Yes.

Q: Thank you very much it’s been a pleasure talking to you.