End of and era in Littlehampton as The Body Shop closes store

The store, in High Street, is scheduled to trade for the last time on March 27, bringing to an end a symbolic link between the town and the company’s founder, the late Dame Anita Roddick, who grew up in Littlehampton, where her family owned the Clifton Café, less than 200 yards away, in Terminus Road.

A spokeswoman for The Body Shop said that the difficult decision had not been made lightly by the corporation – which still has its international and UK head office on the outskirts of the town, at Watersmead.

She added that those working at the Littlehampton store were being given jobs elsewhere within the company.

She said: “We regularly review our store portfolio and have reluctantly taken the decision to close our Littlehampton store.

“We continue to invest in our stores in the area, as evidenced by the boutique upgrades to our stores in Chichester and Brighton during 2012, soon to be followed by Worthing at the end of March, 2013.

“We believe that these stores, along with our strong presence online and via the The Body Shop At Home party business, provide our customers with the flexible shopping experience they desire.”

However, in spite of the company’s optimism, Arun District Council said it was “very disappointed” by the move.

The council added that The Body Shop’s decision to pull out of Littlehampton showed just how difficult the economic climate had been and added that it was doing everything it could to help Littlehampton’s shopping centre thrive.

A spokeswoman said: “We are very disappointed to hear that The Body Shop store in Littlehampton is closing, it has been a big part of the town centre for many years. Unfortunately, it highlights the growing trend nationally of retailers struggling to make a profit in secondary town centres like Littlehampton.”

For the full story, see this week’s Gazette (Thursday. February 28).