THE owner of a jewellery shop which is set to close down is mourning the “slow death” of town centre trade for independent businesses.

Adrian Batchelor criticised the management of Colchester town centre as he prepares to wind up his business after more than ten years.

His shop Upchurch Jewellers has been a mainstay in the town for 65 years, but will close its doors for the final time on Sunday, January 7.

A 50 per cent off sale has been in place since October as the owner tries to shift up to £3 million in stock.

This discount rose to 60 per cent off from yesterday as Mr Batchelor prepares to shut for good.

“Everything must go,” he said.

“Once the store closes, we will have nowhere to retail from, so we are offering some very generous discounts.”

Mr Batchelor made the difficult decision to close the store, along St Nicholas Passage, after a deal with watch giants Rolex came to an end.

“It was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” he said.

“We have been here since 2006 and personally it has got to the point where it is hard work to keep my head above water, let alone make a profit in Colchester town centre.

“The town centre Colchester Council will get is the one they deserve.

“Independent retail in the town centre is dying.

“Many shops are in a similar situation to us with the exception of Fenwick.

“The park and ride service is rarely used at all, car parking in the town is very expensive, I really don’t blame people for wanting to just shop online.

“Generally speaking, the town centre is changing and becoming more restaurant and charity shop-focused.

“Business rates have gone up.

“It is laughable - everything is going up and we earn less.”

He added: “Yes, this is happening everywhere, but I think it is at it worst in Colchester.

“The town centre is slowly dying.”

All staff at the shop will move on, including long-serving Chris Bird, who started work at Upchurch at the age of 15.

She has continued working there for more than five decades since then and will take the closure as an opportunity to retire and spend time with her grandchildren.

Mr Batchelor inherited the family-run jewellers from his late wife Caroline’s mum Anne Farthing, and her partner David Upchurch.

It was founded by Reginald Upchurch in 1952, with his son David taking over in the late 1980s.

'Family-owned businesses will continue to suffer.'

INDEPENDENT retailers must constantly monitor ever-changing prices in order to stay competitive, according to a long-term business owner.

Musical instrument shop Mann’s Music has remained in the same family for generations and has stayed open in Colchester since 1891.

But current owner Tim Mann fears his beloved store may not be around for much longer.

While big-name brands will be gearing up for huge New Year sales, he spends most of his time carefully monitoring the extensive competition to make sure his prices are right.

“We don’t have a set programme for across the board sales like Next and the other big-name shops,” he said.

“We spend this whole period constantly monitoring online pricing and making sure we are competitive.

“What is the case for us, and I suspect now many other independent retailers, is we have offers and sales going all through the year.

“To be quite frank, it is difficult to be positive about the town centre.

“Over the last ten years we have shifted to online, with 50 per cent of our sales now online.

“Sales in the week leading up to Christmas were fantastic, but we still feel the pressure.

“We are actually very, very lucky as my father owns the property so we haven’t got a landlord breathing down our neck.

“That’s the reason we are still here.”