A popular company that sells designer lampshades has announced it is to close its Darlington shop.

Light Owl, which has been in Darlington since 2019 and sold 13,000 individual homemade lampshades, will not be renewing its lease.

Due to 95 per cent of orders coming from its website, the company has made the decision to expand its Middlesbrough workspace and leave Darlington.

In a statement put out on Facebook, the owner, described how 'thankful' he was for loyal customers in the area.

He said: "Hello everyone and Happy New Year.

"We’ve got some exciting info that I’m sure some of you will feel mixed about. Ultimately we’re very happy to say that we’re expanding our business.

"Due to a rapid increase in orders over 2023 we’re thrilled to have taken on a large workshop space in one of Middlesbrough's Industrial estates.

"However, with the majority of our orders coming online, including a lot of you wonderful people in Darlington who are using the website, we are deciding to close our Darlington shop.

"The truth is, around 95 per cent of our orders now come from our online platforms and with our lease coming up for renewal, we've decided we’re leaving our retail days behind us and focusing exclusively on our online platforms that are thriving.

"I'm proud to say, whilst Darlington has been our head quarters for our business, we have sold over 13,000 individual lampshades. But it's just too small for us to keep growing there.

"We’re so thankful to each and every single customer that walked through our quirky doors in Darlington.

"We have made some of the most interesting and fantastic pieces of work from all the custom requests, re-covers and newly imagined lighting ideas. We have loved being a part of the town and Darlington will always feel like our spiritual home.

"These changes however will allow us to grow, bring on new staff to help us with the increased order volume and potentially allow us to expand into even larger work spaces in the near future.

Get the latest news, sports, and entertainment delivered straight to your device for just £4 for 4 months, click here

Most read

Scarlett Moffatt's Northern Unicorn Productions earns £1.1m

Swimmer gets into difficulty doing New Year dip in Tynemouth

North East Voice winners Jen and Liv won't give up busking

"For those who wish to travel you are welcome to come visit us at our new workshop in Middlesbrough, details are on the website. For everyone else, you can always email us or order online as per usual.

"With much love, Rab."

You can browse the website and find out more details about the Middlesbrough workshop by clicking here.