From Retail Theater to Illicit Enterprise: The Wildings Story
Standing outside a broken lift in a derelict Newport department store, the faded sign hints at a glamorous past: ground floor for shoes and Estée Lauder, first floor for ladies' fashions, second for homeware, third for lingerie and Alfred's tea room. But pressing the button yields nothing—the panel hangs by wires, darkness prevails, and the musty air replaces what once smelled of perfume. This is Wildings, which closed its doors forever on January 19, 2019, after 144 years of trading, now a shell of its former self.
A Glamorous Past Fades Away
Peter James, 65, former managing director, recalls Wildings in its heyday. "Department store retail was theater and it was glamorous," he says from his Bristol home. "It was more about service than constant sales. Very traditional, otherworldly, atmospheric." In the 1970s and 80s, 50-60 staff, mostly women, made Wildings their life. James remembers Miss White, who joined in 1942 with big glasses and beehive hair, a formidable presence until her 2007 retirement.
James took over from his father, Sheldon, in 1995, returning from a London management career. Wildings thrived, with 2004 as its peak year. Christmas displays on the balcony were Newport highlights, and it was the go-to for school uniforms. But decline followed: parking issues, retail parks in Cwmbran, and online shopping eroded profits. "When you lose such a big market share, it makes it so hard to make it economically viable," James explains.
The Unwelcome Transformation
After closing, James sold the building for £230,000 in 2020. By October 2023, Gwent police raided 165 Commercial Street, discovering over 3,000 cannabis plants worth £2 million across three floors. Albanian men Adrian Daja and Andi Shabani, living among the crop, received two-year sentences in January 2024 for drug production. The bust featured on BBC's Rookie Cops, showing lighting, pumps, and ventilation equipment later cleared by Mo and Naj, workers from Danny Homeware next door.
Mo and Naj, from Kabul and Helmand, helped clear skiploads of debris for their boss, who bought the building in late 2024. They found evidence of hydroponic irrigation—jerry cans of nutrients—and compost donated to allotments. But the building's decay didn't end there.
Skate Parks and Urban Wanderers
On the third floor, a leaky roof creates puddles, ceiling panels sag, and a makeshift punchbag hangs. Cladding ripped from walls forms a U-shaped ramp—a half-pipe skate park. Graffiti on the wall documents its creation from March to May 2025, signed by "THE WILDINGS WANDERERS" with drawings of bongs and spliffs. This secret fun park emerged post-raid, adding another layer to the building's illicit history.
In offices overlooking Commercial Street, a 2016 year planner and a photo of Fred Wilding, son of founder Alfred, remain. A cigarette lighter and a urine-like bottle nearby symbolize the building's journey from elegance to squalor.
Newport's Broader Decline
Wildings' fall mirrors Newport's high street struggles. In 2022, Centre for Cities found 33% of the city centre vacant, dropping to 19% by 2025—still double London's rate. Marks & Spencer's 2013 closure was "the final nail in the coffin," says James. Guardian analysis shows 8,000 fewer UK retail outlets since 2019, with department stores down 38%.
Mark Vrettos, a Newport native, gives a tour of Commercial Street, pointing out boarded-up shops like WH Smith and Ratners. "They don't have a yardstick to compare it with," he says of locals' disparagement. Charity shops, barbers, and vape shops remain, but the street is a shadow of its past. Yet Victorian architecture above ground level offers beauty amid decay.
Future Prospects and Reflections
James now runs a Bath department store, noting wealthier demographics and better retail mix there. For Newport, he suggests accepting limited retail demand and encouraging residential development. The Wildings building plans include a ground-floor retail unit and 20 flats above.
As Mo and Naj padlock the plywood door against skateboarders and cannabis farmers, memories of service, theater, and Miss White's beehive are sealed inside. Wildings' story—from posh shop to drug den—encapsulates the challenges facing British high streets, where glamour has given way to grit, and reinvention is the only path forward.
