Martin Carlton will always remember the day the earth moved beside his jewellery shop on the edge of Centenary Square.

It was the day the cityscape dramatically changed for ever as giant Provincial House vanished in a controlled explosion to make way for the leisure scheme now standing in its place.

Now Martin is again seeing massive changes from his shop in the heart of the city in the lead-up to the development of the £300 million Broadway shopping scheme.

His shop, which nestles in a corner close to City Hall, is one of the small specialist businesses making Bradford different from other cities.

Martin, 39, took out a lease 12 years ago on his store in Tyrrel Street, the month he married his wife, Joy.

He gained his National Diploma in jewellery at Jacob Kramer College in Leeds before being awarded his Higher National Diploma from the world-renowned Birmingham School of Jewellery.

Martin said: "I have always loved Bradford. It is on a hill and a city centre which has a lot of character.

"I think little shops in a city are very important and make shopping a lot more personal. You get to know people and talk to them and learn a lot about their lives. A lot of my customers have been coming here for a very long time.

"Confidence can be lost in a city where redevelopment is taking place and some places are shut. But anyone who looks can find shops in Bradford which you will not find in any other city."

Martin can make gold jewellery to order - especially rings - and does repairs but his speciality is silver which has become popular in recent years.

Martin and Joy - who is a buyer for the company - scour jewellery shows for stunning pieces which are not mass-produced.

He said: "You go to the smaller stalls the bigger jewellers don't bother with. The little stalls have their own designs.

"They are often made abroad and are unique.

"If you are a jeweller you know what is involved in making it and you know what is value for money."

Martin added: "We're looking forward to the Broadway shopping scheme bringing more people into Bradford and we are all going to benefit.

"But I think the Buy it in Bradford campaign is a great way of telling people there's plenty to buy and see in the meantime, as there always has been."