'We took a gamble but it didn’t work out' - This town centre pet shop has SHUT after less than a year
The owner of Creature Comforts in Congleton said the shop was not sustainable
A town centre pet supplies shop has been forced to shut down due to a lack of trade.
Creature Comforts, in Congleton, closed for the final time on Saturday after less than a year in the town.
Owner Ruth Hindson, who has run a thriving pet supplies shop in Sandbach for 11 years, says a lack of footfall meant the Congleton business was not sustainable.
Ruth, who lives in Sandbach, said: “We opened here last April and expected it to be slow at first but it has not taken off. I don’t know if it’s the competition from the supermarkets and other stores. The footfall here is not good.
“Our Sandbach shop is packed and we have done exactly the same here as we have there, so there was no reason why it shouldn’t work. We have quite a lot of loyal customers but we needed a lot more.
“The business rates have also been a problem as we don’t get any relief because we have two shops, even though we are only a small business.
“I do feel sad to have to close but it is also a relief. We took a gamble but it didn’t work out.”
Ruth and her husband Ian will now concentrate on their Sandbach premises, which is in Penda Way, and are hoping some of their Congleton customers will continue to shop with them.
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She said: “We are going to revamp the Sandbach shop and have more staff on. We have got a lot of loyalty schemes going and we are often cheaper than the supermarkets.
“We have loved working in Congleton – there are some smashing people here. We hope some of them will still come and see us in Sandbach.”
The closure of Creature Comforts, in Antrobus Street, comes just a few months after the nearby Bargain Booze shut down last September, which also left the town centre without a post office branch.
Congleton town councillor Paul Bates said he was sad to see the shop close. He said: “I’m sorry to see the loss of any shop in Congleton, particularly one that’s family run. Small, independent businesses are a victim of the changing face of the high street, with a lot of people shopping online, but I still think there is a need for shops like that in the town.”
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