Chain store manager is 'ecstatic' that Kenilworth shop will stay open despite hundreds of other branches closing across the company

The manager of the Kenilworth branch of the national chain store Peacocks has expressed her relief and happiness that the shop is not one of the hundreds across the company which have had to close due to administration.

Sarah Tabor has said that she and her four staff are "the lucky ones" after it was announced that the branch of Peacocks in Warwick Road would not be among the 200 out of the company's 400 which have been closed.

The store, which sells clothing for women, men and children, will open its doors again at 9am on Monday.

Sarah, a mother of four who lives just two minutes' walk from the branch where she has had several roles since 2011 and is the only full-time member of staff there, is happy and relieved after she was first furloughed in March 2020 due to the Coronavirus pandemic and only worked there for about a month since while fearing it could close permanently.

She said: "I am ecstatic.

"It has been a rollercoaster.

"I love my store - I started working there as an eight-hour-a-week sales colleague and have a great team.

"I can't wait to re-open again on April 12, I have even bought a new dress for the occasion.

"I posted on Facebook that we are re-opening, like many other shops are, and hundreds of people responded and said they now want to show their support for us to make sure we stay open.

"That's important because we still have to prove to the new owners that we are a viable business."

Peacocks was previously owned by Edinburgh Woollen Mills (EWM) but administrators FRP the chain had fallen on hard times and collapsed "due to the devastating effects of the Covid-19 lockdown" on the business.

The buyers are an international consortium, led by Peacocks' former chief operating officer, Steve Simpson.

The 200 shops, which will re-open on Monday, have about 2,000 staff working across them.