A ROMSEY fashion retailer has closed its doors for the last time.

M&Co, in The Hundred, had its last day of trading on Tuesday April 18 after being in the town since 2006.

A post on Facebook from the Romsey store said: “We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for every day you walked through our door, you have been more than just customers, you’ve been friends, brand champions and fantastic supports.

“We first opened our doors in Romsey at the end of 2006. 16 full and fantastic years, but sadly it has come to the time for us to say goodbye, we will miss you all dearly and hope to see you in our next adventures.”

A Facebook post from Romsey Town Council said: “A sad farewell to our fabulous M&Co which has been a great asset to our high street. We wish all the staff the very best for the future and hope you manage to have a lovely night tonight celebrating the end of an era.

“You will be missed.”

Julian Gee, Romsey Chamber of Trade president, said: "It is always disappointing to see a long established business closing down but the loss of this store probably reflects national difficulties in retail rather than problems specific to the Romsey shop. Whilst there are a few vacant premises in Romsey town centre at the moment, there remains evidence to be optimistic in the longer term, with a number of new business opening in the past 12 months - Romsey is a growing town and still a good place to do business."

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The store is closing after the retailer was bought out of administration by AK Retail Holdings. 

The Peterborough-based group bought the brand and intellectual property of M&Co.

It collapsed into administration on December last year and Teneo Financial Advisory was appointed as administrators of the business.

At the time of administration, the retailer had 170 stores across the UK and employed 1,910 staff.

The retailer had experienced a sharp rise in its input costs, which coincided with a decline in consumer confidence leading to increased pressure on cash flows and trading losses, according to Teneo.