We'll be back, say popular Kettering shoe shop as they look for new home

A popular shoe shop on the outskirts of Kettering will close at the end of the week - but their owners have promised that they will be back.

The Padders shop on Kettering Venture Park has been running a relocation sale ready for their last day at their current site on Saturday, October 9, after their landlords didn't renew their contract.

Open at the Kettering site since 2004, the shop has offered a selection of wide-fitting shoes as well as a childrens' foot measuring service.

A spokesman for parent company The Florida Group confirmed that the firm were staying in the area and would reopen as soon as new premises were secured.

The spokesman said: "Our landlord has decided to sell the building. We are hopeful. We are looking for an alternative location for the shop."

Staff who work in the shop will be retained with administration roles, moving to work remotely.

The spokesman added: "We are looking for something in the area and are currently in negotiation.

"It will be in Kettering. We already have a strong customers base in the area and we are known for Padders and children's shoes.

"We are looking for a spot that works in location, budget and size. We have got a couple (of locations) we are looking at."

T.Groocock & Co, the makers of Padders, was sold to Norwich-based The Florida Group in 2019.Renamed Padders (Kettering) Ltd, it’s understood about 50 people are currently employed at the site. The Florida Group and their principal brand, ladies’ footwear Van Dal, will stay at their Norwich premises.

Groococks has a long history in the borough of Kettering. Founder Thomas Groocock was a general retailer in 1906 with no connection to the shoe industry but, with Northamptonshire quickly becoming the home of shoe production, he led the family into business.

Originally established in 1914 in Fox Street, Rothwell, they bought a factory in Rothwell’s Gordon Street in 1922 to keep up with the demand for quality British-made shoes.

In 1982 they launched the comfort-focused Padders brand, with Satra giving Padders shoes one of the highest ever scores in their footwear comfort index tests.

By the turn of the millennium they moved to their 42,000 sq ft premises in Kettering’s Venture Park.

Shoppers can grab a bargain until the end of the week as the store is holding a 40 per cent off of everything sale with children’s Uggs and Vans half price.