Earthian, in Parchment Street, will shut at the end of January, with its last day of trading on Saturday, January 25 due to increased costs and low footfall.
Katie Campling, who has run the shop since its founding in 2020, said that she has concerns over the future of independent businesses in Winchester following several closures.
READ MORE: Former art gallery to be turned into maths tutoring school
Earthian Zero Waste Shop (Image: Earthian Zero Waste) The 33-year-old said: “I strongly believe that when Parchment Street was full of businesses that were all quite unique and offered different things to each other, it created a sort of symbiotic relationship where we each brought our own customers down and then shared them. Someone might come down because they had heard about Earthian, but then would find someone else down Parchment Street and they would, perhaps, discover and start shopping with them. When the street has variety and independent businesses, it works well for everyone.
“I think it’s a shame when we do start to lose businesses because the knock-on effect is that other businesses start to suffer because we’re not supporting each other. Without the businesses being there, there isn’t as much of a draw down Parchment Street, and I think that is the same in a lot of the other side streets in Winchester; when you start to see core businesses close, it has a knock-on effect for the other businesses there, because the footfall starts to wane.
“Potentially that is something that has happened in Parchment Street, because last year we lost Forme and then we lost Bell Fine Art, and there’s definitely been a drop in footfall.
“You need that lively variety to create a community down the side streets, so I do worry that the side streets get a bit forgotten, especially with small businesses suffering and starting to be lost from the city. We have empty spaces on the High Street getting replaced with large chains, which makes the High Street a funnel in a way.”
Ms Campling said that she is planning to take some time out from working following the closure of Earthian so she can look after her newborn daughter, but that she would like to continue working in the sustainability sector.
SEE ALSO: Couple excited to open new bar/bistro hybrid in Wickham
She also said that she is proud of the community that had grown up around Earthian, and the work it had done to reduce waste, saying: “In the four years I was running the shop, we did manage to do an amazing amount for the sustainable movement.
“We managed to save more than 150,000 pieces of plastic from people shopping with us; I had been tracking that since the start. That’s bottles, packets, things people bring in and refill.
“We also had recycling programmes in the shop, and in the time we’ve been running we managed to collect and donate more than 200 kilos of recycling which raised money for charity.
“Even though it is closing, I don’t want anyone to lose sight of what we, collectively, the community around the shop, was able to do.”