St Elli centre to lose major store
Wilko set to close doors and leave town with empty site at key spot
LLANELLI is to lose a major town centre retailer after Wilko announced it is to shut its St Elli store.
The news will deal a significant blow to efforts to regenerate the flagging town centre retail environment, with the two-storey Wilko store occupying a key position in the middle of Llanelli’s shopping district.
Bosses revealed the national chain would, however, retain its presence at nearby Trostre Retail Park.
WILKO will be closing its doors in Llanelli town centre.
The store, which is in the St Elli Centre, has announced that it will close at the end of September.
Shoppers will now have to go to Parc Trostre, as the store confirmed it will be keeping its unit at the retail park. The St Elli Centre confirmed it is marketing the large unit to other businesses.
A spokesman for NewRiver, which owns the shopping centre, said: “We are in ongoing discussions with Wilko to understand their intentions for the existing store in the centre, but we are simultaneously actively marketing the unit to potential other occupiers.”
Lesley Richards, chair of business improvement district Ymlaen Llanelli, added: “Our thoughts at this very moment are with Tony [store manager] and his team. It will be a large space to fill which in itself gives cause for concern and we urge the people of Llanelli to support their local town centres.”
AM Lee Waters called the announcement “a blow for the town”.
He added: “Out-of-town shopping centres and online are killing town centres all across the country, and this problem isn’t unique to Llanelli.
“We need to rethink what we want the town centre to be, and I’ve been pushing the county and town council for the last three years to come up with a strategy for the future, something I’m really keen to work with them on.”
Elli ward councillor John Jenkins has called for an enterprise zone to be introduced in the town centre to protect the existing businesses as well as encouraging new ones to move in.
“This move would reduce the business rates of all retail outlets in the town centre, so would help independent shops and make the town centre more attractive to national chains,” Mr Jenkins said.
“I have been investigating other similar town centres lately and noticed that Merthyr town centre was bustling and thriving and local shoppers and a local councillor said they felt £1 all day parking on Saturdays was pivotal.
“There are many elements that need urgent action. Wilko’s departure from our town centre really needs to be the point which prompts urgent action.”
The high street chain said that the closure was a “very tough decision” to make. A spokeswoman for Wilko said: “We’ve loved serving our hard-working families in the area but sadly, we’ve had to make the decision to close the store.
“We’d like to thank our customers and team members for their support over the years and we look forward to welcoming loyal customers to our nearby Parc Trostre store.
“We’ll continue to offer great choice, value and quality until the last day of trading or continuously on wilko.com.”