A BARGAIN supermarket has closed its doors for good, as residents mourn the loss to their local highstreet.
The branch is part of a major chain with more than 300 stores across the nation.
Farmfoods sells frozen food and fresh groceries at bargain prices.
The closure of the Sutton branch in south London was announced last month, with the supermarket finally shutting up shop yesterday (October 5).
It was prompted by the landlord’s decision to redevelop the site, according to MyLondon.
After news broke of the closure, locals took to a residents’ Facebook group to voice their disappointment.
One wrote: “That’s really sad, I love Farmfoods, soon there shall be no shops left in Sutton.”
Another praised the branch, saying it was a “useful shop, especially in COVID times”.
Others were unhappy about yet another loss to Sutton highstreet.
One said: “Sutton could end up a dormitory town as Crawley was, no services, or many shops in town, but plenty of places to live and good transport to get to and from it.”
Another echoed: “Another one gone.”
A third wrote :”There will be nothing left except for flats. No shops anywhere.”
However, the chain does have plans to reopen the site at some point in the future, according to a spokesperson.
Property Director Alistair Kay said: “The closure is due to our landlord intending to redevelop the land the building sits on. No other Farmfoods shops are affected.
“We’re grateful to all our customers for their loyalty shopping with us at the site over the years and will continue to look for suitable opportunities to reopen in Sutton in future.”
Before the closure, the supermarket launched a huge closing down sale – with 50% off all stock.
RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.
High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.
The high street has seen a whole raft of closures over the past year, and more are coming.
The number of jobs lost in British retail dropped last year, but 120,000 people still lost their employment, figures have suggested.
Figures from the Centre for Retail Research revealed that 10,494 shops closed for the last time during 2023, and 119,405 jobs were lost in the sector.
It was fewer shops than had been lost for several years, and a reduction from 151,641 jobs lost in 2022.
The centre’s director, Professor Joshua Bamfield, said the improvement is “less bad” than good.
Although there were some big-name losses from the high street, including Wilko, many large companies had already gone bust before 2022, the centre said, such as Topshop owner Arcadia, Jessops and Debenhams.
“The cost-of-living crisis, inflation and increases in interest rates have led many consumers to tighten their belts, reducing retail spend,” Prof Bamfield said.
“Retailers themselves have suffered increasing energy and occupancy costs, staff shortages and falling demand that have made rebuilding profits after extensive store closures during the pandemic exceptionally difficult.”
Alongside Wilko, which employed around 12,000 people when it collapsed, 2023’s biggest failures included Paperchase, Cath Kidston, Planet Organic and Tile Giant.
The Centre for Retail Research said most stores were closed because companies were trying to reorganise and cut costs rather than the business failing.
However, experts have warned there will likely be more failures this year as consumers keep their belts tight and borrowing costs soar for businesses.
The Body Shop and Ted Baker are the biggest names to have already collapsed into administration this year.
