Local Redbourn Shop Scoops Award

The Handy Stores in Redbourn Receives Recognition for Thirty Years of Serving the Local Community

Having grown up in Redbourn I was delighted when I found out that Rakesh and Madhu Vekaria, of the Handy Stores on Library Lane, had been awarded Warburton’s Convenience Store of the Year award (voted for by readers of the Review).  I grew up ‘popping over to the shop’ and used to spend my pocket money on a ‘ten pence mix up’ (if you are from Redbourn you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about!)  Rakesh and Madhu seem to know everyone by name and greet each customer with a friendly welcome – a quick trip to the shop takes a little longer than anticipated as there is always a piece of juicy gossip to be shared across the counter!   

The shop on Library Lane has been part of village life in Redbourn for 60 years, with Rakesh and Madhu as proprietors for 30 of them!  It never ceases to amaze me what you can find in this ‘Handy Store’ – its stock is certainly diverse and Rakesh is always willing to order items which he hasn’t got on the shelf (for no extra cost of course!)  But this award is for more than just providing the local community with a good shopping experience; it’s for the important role a shop can play in other aspects of village life; the Handy Stores sponsors a local football team and Rakesh can regularly be found helping people out with odd jobs.  Local residents know that when they walk through the door of the shop they will be greeted with a friendly smile and they are confident that the person serving them is a ‘friend’ who they can stop and have a chat with.    

This award, in my eyes, was well deserved and I am sure anyone who has ‘just popped over to the Handy Stores’ will join me in congratulating Rakesh and Madhu; I am really pleased that they have received recognition for the important role they have played within the local community for the past 30 years- Redbourn would surely have been a duller place without them!