Button Boutique in Wellingborough lives on despite shop closure as business transferred to new independent store

Button Boutique in Wellingborough has been saved by a neighbouring business after the shop was set to close on September 30.

Jean Wilcox, who has owned Button Boutique since 2012, intended to retire on September 30, meaning the business would require new ownership if it was to stay afloat, but it is now being based out of Old and Quirky Antiques, also in Silver Street.

Sarah Meehan of Old and Quirky Antiques has taken over the business, with the intention of running it out of the shop so that local people will still have access to the craft supplies they need.

She said: “We are going to keep it going because we want it in Wellingborough still.

“Button Boutique has been in Wellingborough for a long time, so it’s part of Wellingborough, and we didn’t want it to go.

"If we can find a bit of room to put it in here and help people then hopefully, fingers crossed, it expands further into the shop and helps the community.”

Button Boutique has been a mainstay in the town for decades, but has been in a state of transition over the past few weeks, with stock making its way to Old and Quirky Antiques, just two doors away.

During the Christmas break, Sarah and Jean have worked tirelessly to ensure the town centre is not without a craft shop, and now those looking for supplies can find them in the back of Sarah’s charming antiques shop.

She is taking over the business as a whole, not just acquiring the stock, and intends to keep the service going, using the premises as both Old and Quirky Antiques and Button Boutique moving forward.

The move has delayed, but not derailed Jean’s well-earned retirement. She said: “Business was doing okay, it wasn’t massively successful, but it was ticking over, which is what independents do.

"Luckily, Sarah stepped in.”

Prior to Sarah’s takeover, a suitor was found that would mean Button Boutique would continue to run out of its own premises, but the agreement fell through at the last minute, leaving the business’ future in doubt. The lease on Button Boutique’s shop should have ended on December 1, but was extended to ensure the transfer can be completed.

Sarah added: "It’s a little business that’s been going for years, and if we can help it survive and hopefully get the customers back in again and into Wellingborough it’s a bonus.

"My wish is to be as popular as Jean.”