THE news that Sweet Talk, a well-loved and old-fashioned sweet shop, is to close after 75 years trading, will be a huge disappointment to people in Marlow.

Independent retailers in the Nineties are facing pressure from spiralling rents and from supermarkets selling everything from compact discs to flowers.

Market forces mean there will always be competition between retailers - in theory, at least, keeping prices down. In the final analysis, the shopper will always have the last say. We are the only ones who can decide where to spend our cash.

The dilemma is this: having done the weekly food shop at the supermarket, should we make an extra journey to the florists, or fishmonger, or take the easier option and complete the weekly shop under one roof?

An even more serious threat to independent shopkeepers is the prospect of rent increases of up to 100 per cent, as experienced in Marlow town centre. Businesses are sure to find it difficult to deal with such a price hike and it seems likely others will follow the same route as Sweet Talk if action is not taken to reduce rents.

As a nation of shopkeepers, we must ensure the High Street stays a focus for the community, rather than a crumbling memorial to a bygone age.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.