THE founder of a mother and baby shop says she is "so sad" amid the decision to permanently close its Colchester branch.

JoJo Maman Bébé, based in Sir Isaac's Walk, closed for good on Christmas Eve.

The brand said it had taken the decision not to renew the lease due to a lack of footfall and the effects of the pandemic.

Fans of the boutique baby shop, whose fans include the Duchess of Cambridge, will now have to travel to Chelmsford, Bury St Edmunds or Bishop's Stortford to make purchases.

However founder Laura Tenison said she hoped the brand would be able to return to the town in the future.

She said: "We are so sad to be closing our Colchester store.

"Regretfully the occupation costs, lack of footfall in that street and the knock on effects of Covid-19 closures have added up to us having to make the difficult decision not to renew the lease.

"We have 93 stores across the country and are doing everything possible to protect the jobs and keep our stores trading.

"However, on this occasion we are devastated that entering into a new lease is just not a viable option at this time.

"I’d like to thank our customers and our amazing team for their loyalty and hope we will be back with a new store in Colchester at some stage in the future.

"We remain fully committed to our high street presence."