An indoor market based in Ramsgate’s former JC Rook & Son’s shop in King Street has shut after just five months.
Hidden Treasures, which had stalls with everything from antiques to fudge and cakes and a vinyl record stall officially opened on May 1 but boss Dave Humphries says ill health has forced him to close the venue down.
Dad-of-three Dave, from Broadstairs, had teamed up with businessman Behrooz Abdolvand, who bought the former butcher and pie shop, with hopes of being a base for numerous small traders.
But the doors were closed this month and stallholders have been collecting their items. There has been upset at a lack of notification to stallholders about the closure.
Dave has thanked all the stallholders and customers for their support during the time the venue was open.
The Ramsgate site has no connection with Minnis Bay Hidden Treasures which is an entirely separate venture that is trading as usual.
J C Rook & Sons shops closed in March last year after the firm went into administration.
The firm had been trading in Kent for well over half a century but owed some £2million when it shut, with some 137 people losing their jobs.
The Hidden Treasures closures mean another empty large unit in the town on the heels of the Wilko closure this month.
The WHSmith store in Ramsgate High Street will also shut at the start of 2024.
The retailer, which has some 600 High Street stores and another 800 travel stores, says it has been “unable to trade viably” in the town.
Staff will be redeployed to other stores “where possible.”
The shop is being marketed through Miles & Barr Commercial and will be available for a new tenant to move in from February 2024.
Ramsgate is already suffering from unused shops in the town where large retailers, such as New Look and Argos, have exited large and prominent properties.
In recent years the exodus has also included Sports Direct/USC, destined for smaller retail and flats, Paynes grocers and HSBC bank, which Sugar Rush hopes to move to due to planned development at its current site.
