Our social media executive finds out how members’ investments help local communities

The background

As I’ve recently learnt, our pension savings don’t just sit in a pot, they’re invested. Here at Nest, we work with expert organisations to help us invest it well. One of those organisations is Legal & General (L&G), who invest in UK property on our behalf. 

One of those properties is The Dolphin Shopping Centre in Poole, Dorset. Like many other high streets in the UK, businesses were leaving and footfall was declining as the area faced pressure from online shopping, out-of-town retail and the impact of the pandemic. 

In 2020, L&G worked with the local community in Poole to get people back to the town centre in several ways, bringing in an NHS outpatient clinic in the shopping centre, a co-working space, and a community hub. It also invited 10 local entrepreneurs to move into empty spaces on Kingland, a street outside the shopping centre, completely free from rent and business rates for the first 2 years. This helped them to get off the ground and thrive. And when businesses like those in Kingland thrive, they create jobs, pay rent, and contribute to the local economy – all of which help to boost our pension savings.

And for those 10 local entrepreneurs, the opportunity to have a large shop was life changing. I wanted to speak to these people directly to hear their personal stories on how the investment has affected their lives, so, bright and early on a Monday morning, and with a film crew in tow, I made my way to Poole.

Of the 10 local entrepreneurs who were offered units as part of this regeneration project, we met with three of them, Beth, Hope and Steve. In front of our cameras, all of them opened up to us about their experiences and how the opportunity to open a physical shop has impacted their lives. We had plenty of laughs as well as a few tears, and I think we managed to capture their inspiring stories. (which you can see for yourself on our YouTube channel)

First, we interviewed Beth Holland. 5 years ago, she started by selling 50p second-hand scarves at local markets. Now she owns a boutique fashion shop Lavender Moon and it’s thriving. She’s also found more country music fans in Poole than she ever thought she might.

Dressed in a colourful poncho and Ariat cowboy boots from her own collection, Beth spoke with us about her journey from being an NHS worker to owning her own shop. Despite suffering with poor health in her 20s, she’s persevered and explained to us how the opportunity to open a shop has helped her find a community in Poole and drastically improved her overall health.

Beth learned on the day that some Nest members were to thank for her opportunity to open a shop on Kingland high street. Speaking highly of the initiative from L&G, Beth said ‘I think it's wonderful that everyday people have been able to support individual businesses.’

We then set up the cameras for Hope Dean – owner of plant shop, Wild Roots. Speaking of her family’s influence on her business, she became emotional. From a young age, her green-fingered parents showed her how to look after a garden and now plants are her livelihood as well as her passion. As a mother-to-be, she was extremely grateful that her parents had shared their interest in gardening with her – something she hopes to pass onto her children too.

Hope is also a Nest employer so her employees may also be invested in the project and giving back to their community through their pension savings. Soon, Hope will be expanding Wild Roots into a second unit to create a new space for hosting workshops – something she’s excited to do with more of the local community.

Our final interview was with Steve Wyatt, the proud owner of Restored Retro. 10 years ago, Steve found a passion for furniture restoration. Today, his store takes up two units on Kingland.

He quickly found a comfortable position in a chair which we commandeered from his collection, and in a crisp white polo shirt he was confident and relaxed in front of the camera.

However, the emotion surrounding his journey still made him well up as he talked about how proud his past self would be proud of where he is now. This topic is one that still caught in the back of his throat when he spoke about it. He even found the humour in his story that after enduring years of addiction and rehabilitation stints, he had stumbled into finding his passion and made a career out of it.

From speaking to Steve, it was clear how grateful he is for the investment in the town centre and speaking of the backing from L&G and the investment from Nest members he said,

‘Nest pension customers should be so proud of what they've helped us do.’

Chatting to the locals

We also spoke to locals enjoying a Monday afternoon on the high street about the changes in their hometown. It was a privilege to explain to people that Nest members had contributed to the investment in the area.

Some of the people we spoke to were Nest members themselves. They saw the investment as positive not only because they get to see the results of their investment on their doorstep but also because they’ve helped change the lives of local people through their pension contributions -something they didn’t even know was possible

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I had a brilliant day filming and meeting the tenants. I even walked away as a new plant parent after buying a Snake plant and a Red Nerve plant from Hope.

After the whole experience, it’s hard to imagine not being interested in my pension and thinking how my investments in property, infrastructure, and even stocks and shares might help change the lives of people around me, while also helping me to save and grow my money for later life.