Hundreds are quick to sign Zara petition

A PETITION calling for Dundee’s Zara store to remain open has gathered more than 500 signatures in less than 24 hours.

The petition was posted to change.org under the name Anonymous Zara Lover, after the Tele revealed Dundee store staff recently told customers the shop would close next month.

Bosses at Zara have yet to officially confirm this.

Many have since called for the shop to stay open, with one petition supporter saying: “This is my go-to store for clothing for myself, my two daughters, birthday gifts, Christmas gifts, you name it.

“It’s one of the trendiest stores in the whole of Dundee city centre.

“It baffles me that so much money was spent on V&A and the Waterfront but the city centre is not being celebrated and supported more.

“Please make our city centre one to be proud of by keeping big stores like Zara open.”

Another person added: “I have a personal reason to keep this open not just for the beautiful clothes they sell and the gorgeous building – some of the staff have been there from the very beginning and spent 15 years making it the store it is today.

“I worked there at the beginning as the general manager and had seven of my best years in retail there making lots of lifelong friends.

“It’s like a family in the shop and these people deserve to still work there. Dundee needs Zara.”

Others also expressed disappointment at the closure of the shop, including 39-year-old student Violet Waskowiak (pictured left).

“I don’t go shopping here a lot, but my sister does,” she told the Tele.

“It’s a shame that it’s closing.

“Seeing another big shop closing is upsetting. It seems a bit like the high street is dead.

“I was kind of expecting things like this to happen to be honest. Of course, it’s still a huge loss.”

David Gilliland, 59, (pictured left) also believes the closure will have a “huge negative impact”.

He said: “It worries me that the people who lose their jobs here will have to take jobs at warehouses and things like that, which already don’t have a great record of treating workers well.

“These retail jobs are good and fairly well-paid, and I can see the loss of them leading to more worker exploitation.”

Teacher David also believes Zara shutting its doors is just one example of a bigger trend.

“All the market towns across Scotland that used to have great atmospheres are now all boarded up,” he continued.

“It’s just a change in how people shop.”

Store workers have told Dundee customers the shop is to close next month.