Historic West Sussex business announces garden centre closure
An historic West Sussex business has announced the closure of one of its garden centres.
Gardner and Scardifield, a supplier of building materials and DIY supplies, said it had ‘made the difficult decision' to close its Lancing garden centre as a ‘standalone retail branch’.
The South Street store will cease trading ‘at the end of September’, before merging with the brand’s existing branch in Penhill Road, according to the business.
The company, which employs about 160 people across the county, was established in Lancing more than a century ago.
In a statement shared online, a Gardner and Scardifield spokesperson said: “The current economic climate, combined with the tough trading conditions for physical retail shops, have unfortunately forced us to make this change, consolidate our operations into another branch and focus on our core offering.
"We will still be stocking many of the same lines at our branch on Penhill Road, Lancing so we will still be able to serve you in much the same way, just from a different location down the road. Compost, garden tools and accessories, fencing, coal, logs will all still be available from Gardner & Scardifield.
"We are in the process of improving our frontage and space at Penhill Road to be able to showcase this offering next spring and we are confident we will still be able to service all our customers in a similar way going forward.
"We are sorry to have to share this news, especially given our long trading history there, and we would like to place our thanks to our many colleagues who have worked at the branch over the years.”