A florist has shut after more than 60 years in a town as rising costs made it “impossible” to continue operating.

Michelle Avery took on Flowerworks of Swanley in 2011, after first starting out at the shop as a flower girl when she was 15.

The now 52-year-old said: “I began there originally when it was Steven’s Flowers as a Saturday girl.

“I then worked my way up and when the owner retired I took it over and renamed it.”

The florist catered for a number of events including weddings and funerals, and also offered regular bouquets.

But Michelle, who “absolutely loves” floristry, says problems started to arise when Brexit happened, which was then followed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

She explained: “Fresh produce, fruit and vegetables and flowers – everything became more expensive.

“It was hard but we overcame that price increase, but then during Covid a lot of flower shops and businesses went down and never recovered.

“We didn’t fully recover, we were just trying to make ends meet.

“It wasn’t just flowers that got more expensive, everything we needed to get became so much – even down to the ribbons and spray paints.”

She says they were either unable to source a lot of materials, or they were far too expensive.

As well as this, Michelle says the rise in rent and electricity costs added to the problem.

“Most of our flowers came from abroad from places like Holland and to heat the greenhouses and things like that put the prices up,” she added.

Michelle made the decision to shut the shop in Station Road at the end of August, after more than a decade of running it.

She explained: “I didn’t want to shut it because I had three girls working for me and I wanted to keep everyone in a job.

“I started by cutting down hours and closing the shop earlier which helped a little bit, but it still wasn’t enough.

“I’d used all my savings and had put them into the business just to keep me afloat.

“I had to make that decision, as much as I didn’t want to. It still kills me now that I’m not working because I’ve always done it.”

While she still loves floristry, she is now taking time to spend with her granddaughter who she has been having for a couple of days a week.

She said: “I’m not going to say I’ll never go back to floristry but at the moment I just feel that it’s hard to go back.

“Since announcing the closure I’ve been overwhelmed with love and support. There were so many lovely messages.

“I’ve met some great people along the way and I’ve had my regulars who have always used me.

“It will be a big loss for the community.

“I just want to say thanks for everyone’s support, for helping a small business and for letting me follow my dream.”