Bognor Regis supermarket keeps licence after sale of illicit tobacco under previous owners

Arun District Council’s licensing sub-committee decided to allow the licence for the premises at 70-72 London Road to continue, subject to two conditions.

The shop, formerly known as Bucharest Supermarket, has since been taken over by ADM Foods Ltd and renamed Polish Market.

The review was brought forward by West Sussex County Council Trading Standards on June 1, following a series of complaints, inspections and test purchases dating back to April 2023.

Trading Standards told the committee that officers had found smuggled cigarettes and tobacco which had not been duty paid, as well as alcohol and other products which did not comply with regulations, including products without English labelling.

During a secret test purchase in March 2026, officers were sold two packets of cigarettes marked as duty free and in non-standard packaging without the required health warnings.

A further test purchase in August resulted in two more packets of illicit cigarettes being sold, while a subsequent visit involving a detection dog suggested that prohibited tobacco may have recently been stored at the premises.

Trading Standards had recommended revoking the licence, arguing that conditions would not adequately address the concerns.

Sussex Police and West Sussex Public Health also supported the review, with the police describing the withdrawal of the licence as an appropriate and proportionate outcome.

However, the committee heard that the business had changed ownership and that the new operator had no connection to the previous owner.

Police said they had since carried out due diligence checks and had no concerns about the new ownership. They added that no complaints or intelligence had been received to warrant an inspection of the new shop since it opened on October 2.

The director of ADM Foods told the committee he has operated shops since 2013 and currently runs four. He added that additional training had been provided to staff, including responsible alcohol sales.

He also confirmed that the business did not stock or sell tobacco or vaping products and said illicit tobacco would not be permitted on the premises.

The committee decided to revise the licence by attaching two additional conditions.

The first prohibits tobacco products from being kept, sold, displayed, or offered for sale at the shop at any time.

The second prevents the former licence holder from having any involvement in the day-to-day management or operation of the shop, including staff supervision and exercising control over the business.

Councillors acknowledged the change in ownership and the appointment of a new designated premises supervisor, and concluded that the existing licence conditions remained appropriate, subject to the two conditions added.

The decision can be appealed to the magistrates’ court within 21 days.