Home Furnishing for sale as Ghufar plans to ‘semi-retire’
THERE are more big changes ahead for Shetland’s retail sector after long established Lerwick business Home Furnishing was put on the market.
It comes after national retailer M&Co went into administration and closed all its branches, including its Lerwick store, last week.
There are also a number of other vacant properties in the town centre, including the R.W. Bayes shop which closed at the end of last year.
However, there are also signs of new businesses moving in with the Peerie Shop Café re-opening earlier this week.
Home Furnishing owner Ghufar Razaq said he hopes that someone local could be persuaded to take on the business near the Viking bus station as this would be the best way to keep its particular style and attraction.
He said the business was profitable and the reasons behind selling were genuine in that he and his family were planning to “semi-retire” and were likely to move to the Scottish mainland to follow the children who are at university south.
Razaq said he had started quietly gauging interest in a possible sale last year but despite some interested parties coming forward, no deal had been struck.
“In a lot of ways, the shop and what we supply is pretty unique and it is good to be able to get that in Shetland; we even have people from south telling us that they don’t have a shop like ours on the mainland,” he said.
“It would be vexing if it would change into something else, particularly since it is a profitable business that could carry on running without too much difficulty.
“I am still hopeful that someone local might step forward now that it is officially on the market.”
“Health is everybody’s priority as we are getting older,” Razaq continued, adding that the time was right for somebody else to take over the business.
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“We are not selling the building; we are selling the business,” he said.
The 56-year-old said he became involved in first helping in and then running the family business since he went to school in Lerwick.
It was the Bargain Centre at the time which expanded in 2004 when the family bought out Home Furnishing across the road.
Razaq said Bargain Centre building is the process of being sold while the Magno café premises adjacent to Home Furnishing had been rented out a few years ago.
“I am 56, and I have been doing this for an awful long time. It’s just a case of enjoying life while I am still healthy,” he said.
The asking price for the leasehold is for offers over £100,000 plus stock at value. More details can be found here.
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