A SHOPOWNER charged with looking after the iconic Lomond Galleries shopping centre has defended the site after it came under fire for being “neglected”.

Stewart Harris, who runs the Totally Tartan Kiltmakers on the second floor of the hub, now acts as the caretaker of the former Argyll Motor Works, which operated as a torpedo factory during World War II.

As well as opening the site in the morning and locking up at night, Mr Harris has made sure the centre is getting into the festive spirit by putting up Christmas decorations.

During a visit last week, he told the Reporter the centre isn’t like other shopping destinations, and instead acts as a specialist hub for specific needs.

He said: “It’s an old building. It does have its woes. But the building is certainly not in disrepair.

“We have a few leaks but at the end of the day it’s a big flat roof. It’s a difficult one to try and keep.

“We do have that West of Scotland weather.

“But, as I say, the difference is, the shopping experience here, the local population just don’t see it as a shopping destination, primarily because the businesses that are in here now are all specific niche market destination shops.”

Mr Harris referenced the likes of his own kilt shop, a bridal shop, a computer repair shop, and an antique shop as evidence that the Lomond Galleries centre is not one that people would go to browse and roam and used a well-known toy shop as proof that the site is still a viable shopping destination.

He added: “The only multi-national we have got in here left is The Works.

“They still feel it’s a viable business here or they would have pulled out.”

Recently, the Reporter spoke with Reverend Ian Miller, the former minister of Bonhill Church, about the Lomond Galleries and its future.

He said: “It is an absolutely iconic building which looks great on the outside but unfortunately, inside, it feels a bit neglected.

“It is all very sad.”

But Mr Harris hit back, saying the galleries has 14 active businesses inside out of a possible 21 available units.

Lomond Galleries was reportedly sold at auction for £265,000 in 2017 to a buyer from London, and Mr Harris confirmed that it is managed by a company called Barclay and Co, also based in London.

The Reporter tried to contact the management company to ask what the future looks like for Lomond Galleries but did not receive a response before going to press.