Melton trader makes emotional plea to customers as he prepares to close his shop

Tom Griggs says it is no longer financially viable to continue selling musical instruments, merchandise and clothing from his Icon UK store in King Street.

His brand, formerly known as Icon Music, will continue trading online, where sales of goods such as music merchandise and band T-shirts remains strong.

But he still has 18 months left on his shop lease and must continue trading from there while making losses every week.

Tom has made an emotive appeal for people in the Melton borough to support the shop over the coming months if they can.

He told the Melton Times: “It’s basic economics, the footfall is lower, the margins are lower, the costs are higher than they’ve ever been.

“It’s just not viable anymore, in terms of the number of sales that you are making.”

Tom added: “I’ve got a solid core of customers who do use me but we see, typically, half-a-dozen people a day.

“I’ve got a three-floor building here with an outhouse at the back.

“There are just not enough people who are willing to give their support to make it viable.”

He says the issue is nothing to do with high rents and rates, as some recently closed Melton businesses have cited. Tom pays no business rates, due to small business relief, and he says his landlords charge him a very reasonable rent.

The economic situation was on the slide, he said, before the pandemic and it has never recovered.

“People’s habits have changed,” Tom explained. “Covid has seen a huge swing in consumer behaviour towards online.”

It will be the end of the era for Tom when the shop does close because he has worked in the unit for a quarter-of-a-century.

He worked for Tony Rifugiato there for 15 years when it was previously a music shop called Mel-Tone.

“I’ve been working in here since I was 17 and I’m now 42,” said Tom, who is married with two children.

“Most days now it's a case of selling a few packs of strings and some plectrums. You can’t run a business on that.”

The business received a grant from the government to help it survive being closed for long periods during the pandemic. Tom has invested some of that money into creating an office at his Melton office where he can eventually run the online business full time.

He said: “Utility bills for the shop have gone up no end. “It is very cold in the winter months and it is hard to justify putting the heating on.

“I’ve taken light bulbs out, I don’t have any staff anymore and I don’t pay myself anything like a decent wage.

“I’ve got a family as well and if I’m not getting home to see them then what is any of it for?”

King Street has seen a number of shop closures recently, including Michelle’s Veg Patch, Candy Kiss and the Dot.Store.

Tom added: “I would like to make a plea to local people to try and support us over the next few months.

The store is open Tuesday, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.