Wilko staff who "were like a family" are "grieving" the closure of their store after 20 years.
The Wilko in Skelmsersdale's Concourse Shopping Centre closed its doors for the final time on Sunday, September 24 after the high street chain entered administration last month. Pauline McDivitt, 48, first started working at the Skelmersdale store as a Christmas temp 19 years ago and never left.
She started out as a merchandiser before training in other areas and becoming a customer support assistant.
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Pauline told the ECHO: "What I can say is that we were more than friends in there, we were family and had been through a lot together: births, deaths, marriages. We supported each other through every step of our lives and saw so much together over the years.
"We are all devastated that we have closed. We had a lot of long standing workers in our shop. Most people came to work here and never left because they enjoyed working here so much.
"The last two months have been hard for us not knowing what was happening. To us, its like we're grieving now, its a sad loss for our community and for us. Packing the last of the stock and seeing the store empty was the hardest thing we've had to do.
"We're pleased that the Wilko name will live on under The Range but just heartbroken that we will never work together again. I don't think I will ever find a better bunch of people to work with, it won't be the same but we will keep in touch."
The Range has bought the Wilko brand after a rescue bid for the wider business fell through. The agreement means it will own Wilko's website and could choose to stock and sell some of its products.
However, all 400 Wilko stores including 10 in and around Merseyside will close by early October. Nearly all of the company's 12,500 staff will lose their jobs as a result of the closures.
Pauline said staff at the Skelmsersdale store would like to thank customers for their support over the years, especially over the last two months. Sharing her memories of working for Wilko, Pauline said: "Wilkos was very family orientated and the benefits for working there far outweighed anywhere else.
"We felt like we were looked after and family came first. Wilkos also supported you if you wanted to further your career or train in different areas."
Pauline said the most challenging time working at Wilko was during covid as social distancing measures were put in place to keep staff and customers safe. She added: "We were pleased in the end that we stayed open as it helped us digest everything and we helped each other through it.
"Our most memorable times for me was probably Christmas. We loved it. Especially when the first cages of Christmas items came in.
"Decorating the staff room, Christmas nights out and secret Santa – we always had a lot of fun. It was not just this time of year we made it fun though, we did charity days and raised money for various charities throughout the year."
Hundreds of customers shared their support in response to a post Pauline put on Facebook about the store's closure.
One said: "Having shopped at Wilko since it first opened I think a lot of people haven't yet realised just how much we're going to miss this store.
"Nowhere else in Skelmersdale sells the variety of goods they did from gardening, DIY, bedding etc., right down to the pick n' mix sweets. Best wishes and good luck to all the staff and thank you."
Another customer said: "Another loss for Skem. A loss for the Connie as well. Best wishes for the staff. I hope you all find great jobs."
A third added: "All shoppers in Skelmersdale will miss this store."
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