PLEASE SUPPORT US IN OUR FIGHT TO SAVE OUR WAITROSE STEVENAGE STORE!

Many are devastated to hear the deeply saddening news of the planned closure of our Waitrose Stevenage branch at the end of October 2019. Waitrose has been a much-loved part of our community over the last 41 years and the store is so much more than ‘just a supermarket’. It has become a beloved part of our community and is the heart of our Old Town.

The dearly loved customers and dedicated partners within the store have made Waitrose a place like no other. Our store has become a family, uniting customers and colleagues together into one loving and supportive community.

Waitrose Stevenage also provides support to our greater community through raising funds for local good causes, as well as supporting one another. Our Waitrose is the only larger supermarket in the Old Town area and is home to the ONLY Post Office in this part of Stevenage, making them accessible and accommodating to the most vulnerable members living in the area. Those living with disabilities, illnesses and the elderly will most likely find it very difficult accessing the services that Waitrose Stevenage provides elsewhere, as our store is the only organisation to provide such a wide-scale service in the Old Town area. 

Many of the customers amongst various age groups have continuously voiced just how much they value our branch and have found the store a life line over the years, and still do today. So many have said that they do not know what they would do without our store. It is therefore crucial to our community that we keep our store as many customers, including  a significant number of vulnerable adults, rely on the services our store provides.

Waitrose has many loyal customers and dedicated colleagues who are incredibly invested in our store, and deeply care about it’s future. The relationship’s built amongst colleagues and customers, gives Waitrose Stevenage a unique community in-store spirit that no other shop in our town can offer. We support, care for and look out for one another in such a way, that it is heart-breaking to lose not just our shop, but what we have built together, when we created such a special place in the heart of our community.

WE WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE AS MUCH SUPPORT AS POSSIBLE TO HELP US WORK TOGETHER TO FIND A WAY TO SAVE OUR STORE, OUR PARTNERS JOBS, AND THE HEART OF OUR COMMUNITY.

WHATEVER THE SOLUTION IS, WE STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT IF ENOUGH OF OUR COMMUNITY PULLS TOGETHER, WE WILL BE ABLE TO DEMONSTRATE OUR COMMITMENT TO SAVING OUR STORE WHICH HAS MEANT SO MUCH, TO MANY THESE LAST 41 YEARS.

WE BELIEVE THERE HAS TO BE A WAY TO MAKE THE STORE FINANCIALLY VIABLE OVER THE COMING YEARS AND CLOSURE SHOULD BE THE ABSOLUTE LAST RESORT AFTER ALL OTHER OPTIONS HAVE BEEN EXHAUSTED. It feels to many that this decision to close has been made too quickly and many residents have promising ideas on how the store can be helped financially as a first port of call.

Even supporting a delay to allow our Partners and the Community time to pull together to propose ways we may be able to save the store, and a chance for this to be implemented would be greatly appreciated by so many.

PLEASE SIGN TO SUPPORT US IN OUR FIGHT TO SAVE WAITROSE STEVENAGE! YOUR SUPPORT MEANS THE WORLD TO US.

Thankyou.