Eco-friendly Zero Pantry forced to close Sedbergh store

Zero Pantry in Sedbergh specialises in personal care items, household cleaning products and food free of plastic packaging.

The store, on Finkle Street, which opened in December 2020, will be closing its doors on July 31.

Owners will be moving stock to its Kirkby Lonsdale branch which opened a few months before in August 2020.

Owner Kim Bradshaw said: "There's a misconception that shopping local is more expensive. It isn't. We go into the likes of Asda, Tesco's and Sainsbury's and see the prices of the same items and we're much cheaper.

"The high street is on its knees and what people have to realise is that customers dictate retail. There are a lot of complaints about independent retailers closing.

"Factors like prices and energy rates going up have contributed to this however shoppers have to realise that they need to support local and independent businesses or there won't be a high street.

"We put out a plea to the local community in January last year to basically say 'use us or lose us' however due to lack of support we now have to close our Sedbergh store."

Kim also feels that a dwindling sense of community is also to blame for the downfall of many smaller shops, particularly in the local area.

"The likes of second homes and holiday lets in the area has really killed off a sense of community," she added. "People come here for a few days and don't bother visiting local businesses. There's no sense of community support.

"People tend to visit supermarkets and so much food is being prepared and mass-produced and it's like who is going to eat this food? So much of it is going to waste.

"That's not to mention the amount of plastic created going to landfill. If you get just one person to shop at a store like ours, and then 30 or 40, that'd make a massive difference not only to the environment but also the local economy."

To find out more about Zero Pantry's Kirkby Lonsdale store, please visit the website.