BORDON is to lose one of its major retailers as the closure of the town’s Wilko branch has been confirmed.

The retailer has announced the doors to the Forest Centre branch will close for good next Thursday, September 21.

The announcement follows weeks of uncertainty and dashed hopes that a buyer could be found for the beleaguered chain.

Workers were pinning their hopes on a deal as Canadian businessman Doug Putman was in negotiations to save nearly half of the retailer’s 408 stores.

But the rescue deal fell through with administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) confirming a programme of closures early this week.

The Aldershot and Woking branches were due to close on Tuesday and today (Thursday, September 14) with the Bordon and Havant branches following a week later.

It’s been a case of “business as usual” at the Forest Centre branch since news of the firm’s dire situation emerged at the end of August.

Management at the store have not been able to comment but a worker thanked her colleagues and shoppers in a social media post on Monday.

She wrote: “Just wanted to say thank you to all my work colleagues at Wilko Bordon past and present and all the customers that have shopped there for years and who have supported us in the last few months.”

Workers at the Bordon shop are among the 9,100 preparing for redundancy with the firm’s distribution centres also closing this week.

The GMB union, which represents around 3,000 Wilko workers, has blamed the retailer’s demise on “incompetent” bosses who ignored the warning signs.

The unit occupying Wilko was seen as the final piece of the Forest Centre puzzle when it opened in the mid-2000s. 

Shoppers who spoke to the Herald when news broke of the retailer’s troubles in August feared its likely closure would rip the heart out of the shopping centre and make it less appealing to visit.