Geography of Shropshire - Economy

Economy

The economy of Shropshire was traditionally dominated by agriculture. However, in more recent years it has become more service orientated. The county town of Shrewsbury, the historic castle-dominated Ludlow, the International Olympic Movement's birthplace Much Wenlock and the industrial birthplace of Ironbridge Gorge are the foremost tourist areas in Shropshire, along with the reclaimed canal network which provides canal barge holidays on the Shropshire Union Canal and linked canal networks in the region, although the natural beauty of the county draws people to all areas.

Industry is mostly found in Telford, Oswestry, Whitchurch, Market Drayton and Shrewsbury, though small industrial estates can be found in most of the market towns as well as former airfields in rural areas. Shrewsbury is becoming a centre for distribution and warehousing, as it is located on a nodal point of the regional road network.

In Telford, a new rail freight facility has been built at Donnington with the future goal of extending the line to Stafford, this is hoped it would open the freight terminal up to the East Midlands and the north, plus also re-connect Newport to the rail network.

Telford and Shrewsbury are the county's two main retail centres, with contrasting styles of shopping – Shrewsbury's largely historic streets and Telford's large modern mall, Telford Shopping Centre. Shrewsbury also has two medium-sized shopping centres, the indoor "Pride Hill" and "Darwin" centres (both located on Pride Hill), and a smaller, partially covered, "Riverside Mall". Shrewsbury's situation of being the nearest substantial town for those in a large area of mid-Wales helps it draw in considerable numbers of shoppers, notably on Saturday.

Well-known companies in Shropshire include Müller Dairy (UK) Ltd in Market Drayton. The Royal Air Force have two bases at RAF Cosford and RAF Shawbury, and the charity PDSA has its head office in Priorslee, Telford.