A pet shop is closing for the last time after more than three decades.
Pets Pantry, in Wilton, officially shuts its doors on Saturday (January 16), according to a report in the Salisbury Journal.
Owner Helen Curtis, 63, sold her shop and is heading for the West Country to start a campsite with her two best friends.
“If I don’t do it now I’m going to be too old to do it so it’s a bit like now or never, that’s really the only reason to be honest,” she told the Journal.
Helen and a friend bought Pets Pantry 34 years ago – and looking back she says a lot has changed: “There is now more quality food for different diets and all sorts of accessories for every budget.”
EXCITED
Talking about the upcoming closure, she said: “It’s really sad after all this time but I’m also quite excited at the prospect of moving…It’s the worst time ever to do it or the best time, who knows.
“I don’t know how things are going to go, I might have had to close anyway. But now we’ve got this vaccine and when people start to go on holiday again I think there will be a lot more people staying in this country and camping is so popular. We just hope it will all come together.”
One of the things she will miss the most is the banter with her customers, many of whom have become friends.
“I’ve seen people coming in with their little puppies and seen their kids grow up into adults. I made so many good friends, it’s been good,” she said. “My customers were really, really sad but they were also happy for me to be doing something else. I would like to thank everyone for their loyalty.”
