Long Sutton family-run business Pledgers up for sale as owners reassure customers it is currently business as usual

It is business as usual for a family-run shop that is currently on the market so its owners can eventually retire.

Pledgers in Market Place, Long Sutton was established on July 1, 1945 and will celebrate 80 years of trading in toys and electrical goods next year.

Although the business is up for sale, current owners Jill and Genek Wysoczanski and her brother Graham Smith are carrying on as usual until a buyer comes along.

Mrs Wysoczanski said: “We can’t go on forever and we work full-time even though we are at retirement age.

“This is why we had to decide and we made a decision after Christmas.

“We always say we will do another year but we are getting older and we can't go on forever.”

The shop was founded by Clifford ‘Dick’ Pledger and Mrs Wysoczanski’s parents Morris and Gwen Smith took it on in the 1960s, continuing the Pledger name.

Mr Smith had worked from the start as a television engineer and his children carried on working once their parents retired.

Mrs Wysoczanski, who will be 70 next year, said: “We are carrying on as normal and nothing has changed in the shop.

“It doesn't matter how long it takes to sell and next year will be the shop’s 80th year.

“It is so busy and we have got to look after it.”

The traditional store offers a wide range of products and delivery services including to Long Sutton and Wisbech.

When the day comes and the business is sold, Mrs Wysoczanski feels it will be a bittersweet moment. For now, however, she is reassuring customers that they are not closed and the focus remains on serving their needs.

She said: “It will be sad because we have always been here and we don't know anything else.

“I think it has been here for such a long while and most people have grown up with it.

“It is about service and we look after our customers and I hope it continues because it works - it is so successful.”