The owners of Eggesford Garden Centre in Devon have made the difficult decision to close down after nine weeks of roadworks on the nearby A377 had “a massive and devastating impact on the business” and proved “the tipping point” for the business' closure.

Derrick and Alison Dyer, who have run the garden centre for the past 12 years, announced the closure in their September newsletter. They pointed out that though the roadworks – which were due to repairs being carried out on a collapsed retaining wall and embankment – proved the final nail in the coffin, the business had been suffering due to increased competition as well as rising costs.

Said Mr Dyer: “After 12 years we have made the painful decision to close our business at Eggesford Garden Centre. I am sure you have seen the news headlines about the challenges facing retailers and we have been affected in much the same way as the bigger chains.

“Changing customer shopping habits, increased competition from online retailers, the challenging state of the economy, rising costs for staffing, restaurant ingredients and electricity etc, have all impacted on the business in recent years.

“However, the closure of the A377 for nearly nine weeks had a massive and devastating impact on our business and was the tipping point.

“We have reached a stage where we can no longer carry on trading as we will not be able to make up the ground lost during the closure. We are currently having a closing down sale and all stock must go.”

The garden centre's restaurant ceased trading on August 31, and Mr Dyer has said that if any customers are interested in the fixtures and fittings from the business they are welcome to contact them, as “everything is for sale.”

He added: “Alison and I would like to sincerely thank all our lovely customers.We are very very sad to have to leave Eggesford as it really has been everything to us for the last 12 years.”