A Tale of Two Cities
And many chains
An Art of FACELESS series about Cardiff, Wales
Written and produced by Seren
A Tale of Two Cities - and Many Chains
For the late 1800s Cardiffian seeking:
- meat, fish, live birds
- a watch upgrade or new-fangled radio
- affordable tipples
- a new dress, hairdo, lease of life for old boots
- a tasty meal from the city’s only fish and chip shop
Caroline Street was the place the place to go.
Come WWII, the cobblers, coiffeurs and carcass-sellers were gone, replaced by food vendors with a reputation for tempting sailors, dock labourers, market traders, railway workers, and tipsy theatregoers. And so it remains. A late-night hot spot for quick sustenance that ups the odds of maintaining consciousness long enough to make it home.
So, in 2015, when PMT opened its doors on the foodie strip, there was some surprise.
When they closed again in 2026 - not much.
The location choice, however, was not sited among the factors reported to have contributed to the store’s demise. Official causes included:
- the cost-of-living crisis (believed by many to be weasel-words concealing corruption)
- shrinking margins on branded instruments
- showrooming* for the under-cutting, online big guns (*the term for trying IRL beforebuying ONLINE)
- rising rents and business rates
Many claim the latter as classic gateway steps to full-blown corporate gentrification. AKA, the process described below:
Mega-multinationals and fast-food outlets optimised for rabid consumption and rapid returns displace creative, slow-cultural companies. Landlords, urban developers, investors, councils and governments colonise, cash in, and the Soul of the city is, not-so-slowly, eaten away (by folks no-so-slowly developing Type II Diabetes).
No, I’m not hating-on those out for fast fashion and food. No, I’m not tearfully lamenting lost halcyon days that never were. I am typing words on mega-chain-tech shipped from China, delivered to you via response-guzzling datacentres.
Neither am I placard-marching anywhere. Nobody is listening. I can’t afford to make a legitimate point by being arrested for sanity and humanity. I’m too fucking tired, and I don’t have a solution (that doesn’t involve global revolution).
I’m just noting the nature of the beast - the 24/7, cheap goods and hot food-delivering, convenient, consistent, friendly-faced Alpha beast, that it’s almost impossible NOT to feed.
I am just archiving.
Because our elders are disappearing or derided, our memories are short, and the reality-washing is real.
For anyone confused by my writing (which is common), here’s the story in a nutshell.
Once upon a time a bunch of slumming-it celebs bought food from four guys slaving over a hot-plate to earn enough cash to survive and take care of their ageing parents. High on hot sauce and the vendors’ heart-rending back-story the celebs made the guys an offer they couldn’t refuse. (Not so) Bizarrely, the originally bootstrapped venture trended, went viral, national, global, and joined the big-name chains colonising distant shores one indie seller at a time.
And, coincidentally, that is exactly* how a Nashville carpark take-away found a new home opposite a Victorian pub in Cardiff. No shade to Hot Chicken Dave and partners, nor the hardworking servers.
*Give or take some poetic license.
Though it somewhat spoils my narrative, PMT was a chain. The most likely cause of death was market forces. But (alleged) hyper-aggressive acquisitions and impassioned musical megalomania were unlikely to have helped.
Other recent Cardiffian musical casualties include:
- Gamlins Music, St Mary Street. Shut down in 2025 after well over a century of trading
- Cranes Music, 2015
Survivors:
- G.M Music, Wharton Street, opened in 1984 (I think).
Art of FACELESS · A Tale of Two Cities
Video produced by Seren. Video and GIF ©2026 Art of FACELESS
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