Blow for parents as Inverness kids' store set to shut
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The closure of Mamas & Papas in the Eastgate Shopping Centre on January 18 will mean the loss of 10 jobs.
The news comes after the closure of the Early Learning Centre (ELC) in Eastgate in October.
Parents have been voicing their displeasure at the latest shop loss through social media ,with some claiming high rents at Eastgate were to blame.
One concerned mum said: “Yet another company being forced out by high rents for retail units, even though several units are sitting empty. Feel really sorry for all of the staff as they all wonderful and don’t deserve this, especially at this time of year.”
Another said: “Shocking that another store is closing in Inverness. Zara and La Senza who also left Eastgate still have shops in Glasgow but of course rent and rates are cheaper in Glasgow than in Inverness. Wish there was something we could all do.”
The decision to close the shop came after unsuccessful negotiations to agree terms on a new lease in the centre.
A spokesman for Mamas & Papas said: “Following the approval of the company voluntary arrangement in September, we have held constructive talks with landlords about trading certain stores. The majority of these negotiations are now concluded.
“Unfortunately, we have been unable to agree terms with our landlord in Inverness and we will be exiting this store early in the New Year. In the meantime the store will continue to trade as normal. We will of course be providing all necessary support for employees affected.”
A consultation with staff is going on which includes details of enhanced redundancy terms for the 10 workers who will be affected.
Eastgate Shopping Centre manager Jackie Cuddy said: “What they have done is graded their stores A, B and C depending on what money they make. All of the As they will keep open, the Bs they will try to keep open and see if they can make more money and the C ones will be closing.”
The Inverness store fell into group C.
She added: “The thing is distribution costs to the Inverness branch are higher. That would have been a consideration, because it’s quite expensive.”
Santa has set up his grotto for the festive period in the vacant ELC unit.
