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Sadness at Kettering bra shop closure
A lingerie shop which has been in Kettering since 1960 will be closing later this month as the credit crunch continues to hit small traders.
Harwayes lingerie in High Street, Kettering, will be closing on June 18, after its Leicester-based parent company went into voluntary liquidation last week.
But due to rent increases, a decision had already been made to close the Kettering branch, as it was deemed an "unsustainable business" for the family-run company.
The shop is now selling off all of its stock – including well-known brands such as Playtex, Wonderbra and Gossard – at a 50 per cent discount.
The closing down sale has recorded four times the regular sales figures since the closing down boards went up on Saturday and has even crashed the firm's website on several occasions over the weekend, with shoppers trying to snap up a bargain.
Shoppers have said they are disappointed the firm has decided to shut after almost 50 years in the town.
Marjorie Butler of Netherfield Road, Kettering, said: "There aren't enough of these old-fashioned stores any more that are all about good service.
"People will just pick up their bras at the supermarket for a few pounds. It is no wonder women don't wear the right bras, there aren't many places any more where you can be fitted properly."
When all of the 23 shops in the Midlands region close, more than 120 jobs will be lost, with two full-time and two part-time job losses in Kettering.
The firm's managing director Tony Waite said: "My biggest disappointment was the fact I will be putting my loyal employees out into the jobs market.
"It is no longer sustainable."
The decision was taken on Friday to put the chain into voluntary liquidation as a result of the economic downturn, supermarkets and high street chains offering cut-price underwear and the rising cost of energy and rent bills.
Harwayes also has a branch in St Mary's Place, Market Harborough, which is due to close down on June 15.
However, there is some positive news for shoppers in Kettering as card shop Paperbox has moved into the old Birthdays shop in the Newlands Centre.
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Weather for Kettering
Monday 13 February 2012
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