ONE of Northallerton's oldest shops has closed its doors for the last time.

J Cleminson, which opened in the town in 1884, has sold all manner of hardware goods for the past 120 years.

But its owner, Brian Holmes, said the shop cannot now compete with others, such as Woolworths and Boyes, and J Cleminson closed for good on Saturday.

The closure will also see the retirement of owner Mr Holmes, 65, who started working full-time in J Cleminson since 1953. Before that he was an errand boy.

Mr Holmes said: "There are a number of reasons why we are closing, but mainly we have found that our trade has been very much affected by all the recent supermarkets and B&Q.

"We get a lot of opposition from Boyes. Woolworths opened a new hardware and household section in the summer, and Sam Turner's shop sells pots and pans now. We seem as though we are fourth or fifth choice on people's lists.

"We could have carried on with less staff but that would have been a bit difficult to manage."

John Cleminson set up the business in 1884 and the shop moved to its current premises at 214 High Street in 1911.

At one time there were four hardware shops in Northallerton town centre, but over the years they have closed, until only J Cleminson remained.

The closure of J Cleminson is the latest in a re-organisation of Northallerton High Street.

Betty's caf is moving next door but one to the former HSBC building, and the owners of that building are taking over the current caf premises.

A clothes retailer is being lined up to take over the building that Betty's currently occupies, but the company's identity has not yet been revealed.