A long-serving Wilko employee has spoken about her sadness at the closure of her branch after almost 30 years of working there. Karen Wallace was one of the first staff members at the Sunderland store when it opened in the city centre in 1993. After the recent announcement that Wilko was going into administration, the store is now closing for good.
Wallace has expressed her heartbreak at the news, saying that the store is “like a corner shop” and is a very personal place for both staff and customers. Many customers of all ages relied on the store and its staff for support, with older people often popping in simply for a chat. These regular visitors, or those who have worked at or frequented the store over the years, have been moved by its closure and have been coming in daily to say goodbye.
Despite the challenges of the past year, Wallace said that the staff was a “big family”, supporting each other through the good times and the bad. Although the branch has been in administration, around 70 staff members were employed at the site before the final closure this week.
In addition to its retail space, the store is also home to a restaurant and café which will be closing along with the retailer. Regular customers and staff members are sad because the store and its facilities were seen as a vital meeting point for the local community, and many relied on it as a central hub in Sunderland
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