A POPULAR convenience store in Chard has closed after its parent company went into administration.

My Local, located next to the Guildhall on Fore Street, was one of the firm's 93 stores to permanently shut its doors last week.

It is not known how many jobs have been lost due to the closure, with a spokesman from My Local saying that employees may be able to transfer to Morrisons supermarkets, or to other national retailers and supermarket chains.

Administrators KPMG has been appointed to oversee the process.

The firm emerged from the sale of a number of Morrisons stores sold last year, but Mike Greene, chief executive of My Local, said stores had not been able to return the business to profit in what he describes as "intense competition."

Mr Greene said: “This is the first time in 20 years that the convenience sector is not growing strongly.

“Some long-established high street names have gone and many of the large chains are shrinking the size of their networks. In addition, the supermarkets are cutting prices to compete with the discounters, piling further pressure on prices and margins, making it harder to compete.

“Of course it is easy to blame market conditions. But the reality is that, while we more than halved the rate of losses, the management team has been unable to return the business to profitability.”

KPMG said it was already in discussions with parties interested in taking on the 32 stores which remain open, as well as some of the closed stores.

Mark Orton, partner at KPMG and joint administrator at My Local, added: “Companies across the convenience store sector have faced significant challenges in recent times, through increasing competition, pricing pressures, changes in customers’ buying habits and general structural change within the sector."

Cllr Dave Bulmer, mayor of Chard, said the news of the closure was sad for the town's high street.

Cllr Bulmer said: "Obviously, it is very sad when any high street store closes.

"This is a national decision that they have made to close all their stores, it's not specific to Chard

"The Chard store, from what I understand, was very successful because of its location on Fore Street and everyone popping in to pick a few things up.

"But, it was a corporate decision and in that respect, it's a bit hard on Chard.

"Any story closing is sad news, especially when the high street and the businesses on it are facing such a tough climate."