A HIGH-STREET favourite is being forced to shut for good after 50 years, leaving customers feeling concerned for their town centre.

Steffans Jewellers, Northampton, has been forced to close after being a ‘class’ town centre jewellers for 48 years.

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The store on Abington Square will be saying its final goodbyes on November 9, with owner Steffan Suter gutted to see it go.

He said: “I was hoping to make it 50 years in Northampton but the town’s retail environment isn’t as good as it used to be.”

Steffan founded the jewellers in 1974 at 24-years-old was able to expand into the shop next door after 18 months.

When Steffan’s son, Wes Suter, was just nine he also began working in his fathers shop and is also sad to see it go.

The family said they tried their best to support Northampton but their ideas were turned down when suggesting ways to make the town centre more appealing to visitors.

Loyal customers of the jewellers have flocked to Facebook to voice their concerns over another high-street store being forced to close.

One wrote: “Another good retail outlet leaves our town. Revamping the market square will never attract shoppers to the centre, the Council needs to find a way to attract retailers back into Northampton.”

Another added: “Sad another class shop closings for good. Yet another bit of old Northampton is going.”

A third user said: “I went into Northampton last week for the first time in years. It’s awful – people sleeping in doorways, all banks and building societies in Abington St apart from Bonmarche.

“And the ‘new’ market square is in my opinion a total waste of the millions it cost! The money would have been better spent on accommodation for those sleeping in doorways!”

Northampton town centre Business Improvement District Mark Mullen backed the town centre revamp.

He said: “There is huge positivity around the new Market Square and with work due to complete soon on Abington Street and Fish Street, plus the arrival of Stack, the beginnings of a bright new era for Northampton town centre are starting to emerge”.

Unfortunately, Steffans Jewellers isn’t the first retailers to close in Northampton, with many other shops struggling with the reduction in footfall in town centres.

Fashion giant Next is closing after arriving in 2015, as well as a huge branch of the DIY retailer Homebase.

TGI Friday’s declared it would be shutting in Northampton and filed bankruptcy earlier this month.

It’s now closing 35 location in the UK with more than 1,000 staff losing their jobs.

Another well loved chain that has closed its doors for the last time is The Body Shop.

The Northampton branch started out in Peacock Way in 1981 and has been a key part of the high-street’s history.

A spokesperson from West Northamptonshire Council said they are saddened to hear about the closure of Steffans and acknowledge the significant role it has played in Northampton’s history.

They added: “As a council, we are committed to creating a vibrant environment where businesses can grow and succeed.

“Supporting our small business community is a key priority for the council.”

Thankfully, The Suter family has decided to set up shop 20 miles down the road in Market Harborough.

They are planning on opening this store as father and son after after Steffans Jewellers closes.

The Sun has reached out for Northampton Council for a comment.

Why are retailers closing shops?

EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre’s decline.

The Sun’s business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors.

In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping.

Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open. In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed.

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The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing.

Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns.

Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead.

Boss Stuart Machin recently said that when it relocated a tired store in Chesterfield to a new big store in a retail park half a mile away, its sales in the area rose by 103 per cent.

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In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Wilko, Debenhams Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Paperchase to name a few.

What’s increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online.

They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places.

Standard Life has completed £250m pension buy-ins with the Halma Group Pension Plan and the Apollo Pension and Life Assurance Plan.

The bulk purchase annuity transactions, finalised in September, secure benefits for 2,200 members.

The trustees, sponsors and their advisers collaborated closely with Standard Life to meet both plans’ de-risking objectives and secure the buy-ins, significantly reducing risk exposure for the plans and their members.

LCP acted as the lead transaction adviser to the trustee, with investment advice from Mercer and legal advice from Squires Patton Boggs.

Standard Life BPA transaction manager, Joe Haswell, said: “By collaborating closely with the Trustees, sponsors and their respective advisers, we are pleased to provide a secure home for the benefits for over 2,000 members.

“The plans came to market with clear objectives and well-prepared data and benefits, which laid the groundwork for an effective outcome.

“The BPA market continues to be busy, and as the end of the year fast approaches, solid preparation like this remains key to the efficient production of quotes in a competitive market.”

LCP partner David Fink added: “By running the two buy-in processes together, this helped the Trustees secure attractive pricing for both plans quickly and efficiently in the busy market.

“The increased scale of the combined transaction also meant the plans were able to optimise the secondary market sale for the plans’ illiquid assets.”

ALDI has rolled out a huge toy event TODAY with prices starting from as little as £2.49.

Shoppers and parents will be racing down to their local store to start stocking up for Christmas with these incredible deals.

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The supermarket giant launched everything from wooden kitchen sets, fire and vet stations, to bubble machines, books, and cuddly toys.

For little ones who are obsessed with Paw Patrol there’s a fire station set, complete with the beloved Marshall character.

Meanwhile, for kids who are into Barbie, there’s a vet station which includes a chair, clipboard, stencils, paper sheets, animal charts, colouring pencils, shower head, comb, hair dryer, shampoo, syringe, scissors, otoscope, stethoscope, bandage, bowl, pet food, medicine and plush dog.

For Pokemon fans, there’s a range of different merch, from plush cuddly toys to trading cards from £12.99.

There are also plenty of interactive games for learning, such as Crazy Anatomy, Volcanoes and Eruptions, and Forensic Detective Case, all under £20.

Aldi are offering several small, cheaper items which are fantastic for grabbing on the go.

Reusable sticker books, storybooks, and Tattle Tales easily fit into children’s’ backpacks, and could make for great entertainment during car journeys.

And, if you’re looking to upgrade your child’s rucksack this Christmas, there are adorable character plush ones in the range.

Little ones can chose from Chase, Sonic or Tails, all for £12.99.

Crafting presents are also part of the Aldi toy event, with Colourmania sets available for just £3.99.

And, youngsters may love playing with Kevin the Carrot Orchard Game for the same price.

Disney fans will be pleased to hear there are princess dolls, soft toys, books, and even PJs in the range.

Aldi are offering a selection of soft toys for kids who still like to take a cuddly to bed with them.

They can select from Reversible Christmas Squishies, Super Mario, Paddington, Peppa Pig, Disney Stick Flopsies and more.

Also for cozying up at bedtime, children’s onesies are only £7.99 and come in choices of Lion King, Rapunzel or Disney Princesses.

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The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) has announced that seven insurance and financial planning firms have achieved Chartered status over September and October.

Firms that gained Chartered status are: Augustine Limited; Avoca Wealth Management Ltd; Better Financial Planning; Park Insurance Ltd; Sedulo Wealth Management; SGM Financial Management Ltd; and Suttons Independent Financial Advisors Ltd.

Chartered status is a symbol of technical competence and signifies a public commitment to professional standards.

President of the CII, Ian Callaghan, said: “We are delighted to welcome these seven firms into our Chartered community.

“In achieving corporate Chartered status, they have each made a public declaration to professional standards, and are committed to upholding the Chartered Ethos of nurturing knowledge, client centricity and serving society.

“Corporate Chartered status is a key component in building public trust and a true mark of professionalism.

We look forward to working alongside these firms to deliver good customer outcomes and best practice.”

BATCH cooking saves time and cash, plus can help you enjoy tastier and nutritious meals.

You can also make grub go further by adding cheaper foods to balance out pricier ingredients such as meat.

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Here’s how to affordably bulk out your meals so you have more to save and freeze for another day.

OATS: Typically seen as a breakfast meal, but a handful or two can be used to thicken almost any sauce and add substance.

Use fine- milled varieties or blitz in a processor to help them blend in. Packs can be found for less than £1.

PULSES: Packed with protein and nutrients, beans and pulses are an excellent way of adding variety to dinners without breaking the bank.

Kidney beans are often found in chilli con carne but you could add a tin of black beans too (49p at Tesco).

Lentils work well with a cottage pie mix and chickpeas are excellent added to curries.

FRIDGE RAID: Many people follow recipes word for word, but often you can adapt to use up ingredients you already have.

Check your fridge for vegetables that can be added.

Tomatoes, broccoli, peppers and the like are incredibly versatile and work in many sauce-based dinners, helping to cut down on waste and increase the volume of your meal.

FROZEN VEG: Stretch out meals and add nutrients by adding a couple of handfuls of frozen veg such as peas, sweetcorn or broad beans.

Keeping these in the freezer ensures they won’t go bad before you use them and can be used in many dishes.

RICE: Add a couple of handfuls of rice to soup, casseroles and stew for a heartier and fuller meal with extra texture and minimal costs.

POTATOES: Chopped spuds are perfect for adding to curries and stews.

You can par-boil or just make sure you cook sauces long enough to get your potato nice and fluffy.

• All prices on page correct at time of going to press. Deals and offers subject to availability.

Deal of the day

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BRUSH up on your dental hygiene with the Oral-B pro 3, down from £100 to £35 at Argos.

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Cheap treat

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SWEETEN up festivities with limited-edition packs of Haribo’s merry mix, £1.25 from Asda.

Top swap

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WITH flavours of cherries, chocolate and vanilla, 19 Crimes cabernet sauvignon, £10.99 at waitrosecellar.com, is a delicious full-bodied red.

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