One of Shrewsbury’s longest-running wholefood shops has closed its doors on nearly 30 years of trading after the owner fell into financial difficulty.
Wild Thyme, in Castle Gates, began life as a community shop run by Crabapple Co-operative and quickly developed a reputation for its range of stock from herbs and spices to over 40 different types of flours, as well as locally sourced produce.
But its owner, Janice Oliver, who has been running the business for 10 years, made the decision to cease trading last Thursday. She has been unable to pay herself a salary for the past three months and one part-time job has been lost.
Janice said: “It’s due to financial reasons but mostly due to the recession. I had tried to keep it going for as long as I could and I’ve had a lot of support from customers. The money situation was beginning to make me feel really stressed and so I had to think of myself.”
Janice added that a lot of her savings had gone into the business and she revealed this winter had been particularly hard on trade with the snow hampering Christmas sales.
Meanwhile, messages of support have been hung up in the windows of the shop after Janice began breaking the news to ‘gutted’ customers, some of whom have been visiting for more than 20 years.
Janice said: “I am disappointed and sad to have closed, but it is not the most practical place in Shrewsbury to have a shop. I have a lot of supplements and food stock left, so if anyone sees anything they would like, if they knock on the door I will be here most days for the next few weeks.
“It’s been quite a shock for people and they have sent me a lot of emails about how much they like the shop and there are a lot of letters in the windows.”
She added: “It’s been more than a food shop, it’s been a community shop and the most popular sales have been the herbs and spices which people could weigh out for themselves.
“Wild Thyme has been part of my life for so long and I would just like to say thank you to everyone who has supported it over the years.”
by Charlotte Hester