SADNESS was shared as Evesham bid a fond farewell to a long-standing shop.

Flowers, gifts and cards were exchanged as Oxfam Books and Music closed its doors for the final time last week. 

The store has been a notable face in the high street for the past 30 years after it moved from Bengeworth.

Evesham Journal: Lindsey Lavender received a box of chocolates on the final day.Lindsey Lavender received a box of chocolates on the final day. (Image: Lindsey Lavender)Some customers who had visited to say their last goodbyes to staff had been visiting the store since the 1970s and said it would be greatly missed.

Shop manager Lindsey Lavender said the decision has come with mixed feelings, and she is extremely grateful to the customers and staff who had supported the shop.

"It seems that talking to some of our customers, Oxfam Evesham has been in existence in town since the 1970s, so effectively over 50 years! So much longer than originally thought," she said.

Evesham Journal: SADNESS: Staff and some regular customers came together for their final Christmas.SADNESS: Staff and some regular customers came together for their final Christmas. (Image: Lindsey Lavender)"To lock the doors for the final time was very surreal and very sad. 

"It has been a weird week, as in after the closure, there has been no focus."

The cost of living has led to customers spending less money in the store, and she said spending habits have changed massively since Covid with more people shopping online. 

However, the High Street store's final week of trading had broken financial records.

Evesham Journal: FAREWELL: Customers said a final goodbye to staff. FAREWELL: Customers said a final goodbye to staff. (Image: Lindsey Lavender)"The whole week was chocker block," said Ms Lavender.

"What we made in that final week is more than what we made in a lifetime at the branch.

"One day was what we would make in a week, which is tremendous.

"Thank you to all the customers who made sure we went out with a bang."

Last year, the shop changed from being a typical charity shop to one that just specialised in selling books and music. 

The shop's transformation allowed it to become a community hub by running sessions for the Poet Laureate and hosting live music sessions.

One customer said they are unsure on what they will do now that the store has left Evesham for good. 

Another added: "They will be sadly missed. It's such a happy place. I love the music you played, too."

Ms Lavender has been helping Oxfam volunteers sign up for other volunteering opportunities and said their business's loss is another charity's gain.