Accrington in shock at Clarkes closure (From Lancashire Telegraph)
When news happens, text LT and your photos and videos to 80360. Or contact us by email or phone.
Accrington RSS Feed Send your news, pictures & videos
Accrington in shock at Clarkes closure
8:00pm Thursday 14th January 2010 in Accrington
SAD CLOSURE: The store in Whalley Road
ONE of Hyndburn’s most historic shops has closed.
Clarkes of Accrington has sold motorcycles from its Whalley Road base for more than 50 years.
But now the Suzuki dealership has shut, leaving nearby traders and the borough’s council leader bemused.
David Casson, owner of Vac Services, opposite Clarkes in Whalley Road, said: “It is very sad that it has closed because it was a good family-run business.
“If it’s another business that is a casualty of the recession, then it’s a great shame.
“It has been part of Accrington history for years and we are like a little community here on Whalley Road.”
Jason Bray, from clothes shop Town and Country, also in Whalley Road, added: “It has been there a very long time and it is well known.
“It is very bad but it is simply the way things are going at the moment.”
Yesterday, the main Clarke’s shop was locked up, although much of the stock remained in the showroom.
Meanwhile, a Clarke’s showroom across Whalley Road from the main premises continues to house a for sale sign, which has been up since September.
Hyndburn Council leader Peter Britcliffe said: “This is very bad news because Clarke’s is to Accrington what fish and chips are to Blackpool.
“It has been there forever.
“It is very sad if the recession has brought to an end one of Hyndburn’s most famous businesses.
“It is depressing that we have lost another shop from Accrington town centre.”
However, he said the council, which last year helped Oswaldtwistle Mills move into the old Woolworths’ unit, would continue to strive to fill Accrington’s empty shops.
A Suzuki spokeswoman confirmed that Clarkes closed on Tuesday, but could not say why.
No one was available for comment at Clarkes when we contacted the business
Comments(9)
gixer
says...
8:22pm Thu 14 Jan 10
Michael@ClitheroeSince58
says...
8:32pm Thu 14 Jan 10
Wikidi
says...
10:41pm Thu 14 Jan 10
Arndale centre is not supposed to depend on superstores like Sainsbury’s to expand its supposed to look at other towns surrounding it and hand questionnaires to the public to ask questions. These questions can range from the likes and dislikes about the centre and what could be done to uplift it so that we the public don’t drift away elsewhere.
whitty-147
says...
10:15am Fri 15 Jan 10
gixer wrote:you must be a complete prat then i having nothing but praise for the management and staff in that shop i know them personnally and they are excellent so to say this in the press you want going with maybe you should look at yourself and see why someone talks to you like that maybe you were out of order first
im not surprised they have gone under ,their customer service and attitude is appaulling i would be surprised if they ever got repeat business,after the way i was treated
TickDurpin
says...
2:44pm Fri 15 Jan 10
whitty-147 wrote:While it is a great shame for Motorcyclists around here I must agree with gixer. I have been on the recieving end of very poor, sometimes rude service at Clarkes. I guess Whtty-147 If you know them well, perhaps they were friendly with you and willing to go the extra mile with the customer service, but that is not the experience that I or several of my friends recieved.
gixer wrote: im not surprised they have gone under ,their customer service and attitude is appaulling i would be surprised if they ever got repeat business,after the way i was treatedyou must be a complete prat then i having nothing but praise for the management and staff in that shop i know them personnally and they are excellent so to say this in the press you want going with maybe you should look at yourself and see why someone talks to you like that maybe you were out of order first
jry
says...
3:06pm Fri 15 Jan 10
Slowhand
says...
3:17pm Fri 15 Jan 10
jaffa90
says...
1:22pm Mon 25 Jan 10
cyberpaul says...
8:14pm Thu 14 Jan 10
A sign of the times though - no-one has the money they used to have and as bikes in the UK are mainly Sunday toys rather than everyday transport, it is only to be expected that bike shops will close.
Bike sales are down right across the UK by about 35% in 2009 compared to 2008. Even moped and commuter bike sales are down - strange when you look at the cost of fuel these days.
I suppose the low value of the pound doesn't help either - anything made in Japan or Europe is getting very pricey. Even a basic 125cc learner bike from Suzuki can cost well over £2000 and some big bikes cost more than a really good car. A top-of-the-range Harley for example is nearly £20,000 !!!
Who would have thought it would come to this, in a country that supplied bikes to the world only 60yrs ago.