Major Chichester retailers closed and at risk of closure - Clinton's gone and fears for River Island

Clinton’s card shop in East Street closed at the end of last month, closely following Paperchase which had gone into administration.

Across the road, River Island, is set to close its doors later this year, according to sources. In the meantime shoppers can enjoy a sale with all remaining stock priced at £10 or under.

The retailer’s press office has been approached for comment.

Former owner of Present Surprise in South Street, Dave Hockeridge, said: “We are very sorry to see that Clinton’s has now closed as well on East Street. When we closed our card and gift store we saw a pattern emerging of quality greeting card companies closing down, This they put down to younger people not sending quality cards but preferring to send the cheap and easy option of a Facebook message instead. This of course is also a lazy way of doing things. Added to this the increase in postage, which hasn’t helped the industry.

"We were very fortunate enough to be in the situation where we could retire and not have any financial worries about closing our successful store, which people are still saying to us was the best card store in town. With Paperchase closing today as well, it is a sad time for anyone that likes not only sending quality cards but receiving them as well. Chichester of course still has a couple of card retailers but sadly the choice is nowhere near as good for quality branded cards. Retirement has been good for us, so far with plenty of travelling, lots of Air BnBs and lots of long walks for the boss of Present Surprise, our Westie Edward.”

The city has also recently become home to a number of new businesses. The Sty in Chi, street food eatery, opened in North Street in early March and has bee enjoying regular queues out the door from hungry customers.

Have you got any business news from the four streets of Chichester? Get in touch: [email protected]