A mainstay on Southend High Street is set to close when its lease comes to an end next year.

The Echo understands Clintons Cards will be closing on January 18.

Signs have gone up in the shop window to inform shoppers that they will be vacating just after Christmas.

The business, which offers a range of cards “for all occasions”, gift wraps, tapes and stationary occupies one of the larger units on the High Street and is between HMV and Sport Direct, opposite Card Factory and the Works.

The business is believed to have been in the High Street for around 20 years.

A member of staff at the store said: “January 18 is our last day of trading, we are closing when our lease runs out and we hoped to do some renegotiation with the landlord, we don’t know how the conversation went.

“We have not had our consultancy meetings and we found out a couple of weeks ago, within the next few weeks we will have meetings and we will look at options for relocation but we are unsure of how viable that will be.

“In general, it is nice that with a lot of people, they have told us they have been loyal customers, that we have been here since the early 2000s, in this location for 20 years.

“We have been told that people have been coming in here for years and that they really miss it and that it is a reason to come to Southend.

“We do have our busy and our quiet months but unless they tell you it has been nice, the overwhelming thing is that they will miss us, people have been overwhelmingly nice.”

The staff member added: “It has been nice to hear sometimes that you have had the support.”

Southend Labour councillor responsible for business, Matt Dent [pictured inset] called it a “real shame.”

He said: “This is not what we want to hear, that business has been in there for decades and for it to close is a big blow to the High Street.

“It does feel a bit out of left field.”

Clintons was contacted for comment.