It was the end of an era in Lossiemouth yesterday when one of the most well-known shops in the town officially moved out of the community.
Grampian Furnishers has been a staple of the coastal town for the last 40 years, but is relocating to new premises just a few miles away on the outskirts of Elgin.
The family-run shop was first established in 1975 by James Clark and has grown to become one of the North of Scotland’s favourite family furniture stores.
It is now run by James’ son Royce Clark, who spearheaded the move from Lossiemouth to Elgin and said he was sad to be closing up the Queen Street store for the last time yesterday.
He added: “This is an emotional day and it’ll be even more emotional when we turn the key in the lock at 5 o’clock.
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“It’s the end of an era and start of a new one. We decided to move from Lossiemouth to Elgin because of our long-term plan for the next 20 years, so hopefully we will go for another 43 years.
“It has been a big move, but hopefully it will pay off. The future plan is to get busier and sell more stuff and get long-term security for the business and be part of the local community for as long as we can be.”
The Clark family handed over the keys to the iconic premises to Jill Fletcher, who wants to utilise the familiarity of the shop to the locals as she transforms it into a wellness centre.
She said: “We’re turning this into a fully-functioning gym on the ground floor with a cycling studio and then upstairs we have got five therapy rooms where there will be a mixture of psychotherapy right through to holistic therapy and on the top floors we will have the martial arts area.”
“Its really about everyone coming into this one-stop shop and getting everything they want to feel better about themselves and help the community.”
The wellness centre will be called 44, named after the shop address on Queen Street.