De Bradelei Wharf shopping outlet in Dover to close today for final time
10:53, 14 July 2023
updated: 07:42, 17 July 2023
The closure of a huge shopping centre has been described as the “end of an era”.
De Bradelei Wharf, in Dover, is shutting today after 21 years, with 25 members of staff being made redundant.
But it is not known what will happen to the large building, in Cambridge Road, with owners Dover Harbour Board currently still “scoping out potential future uses”.
Site manager Sally-Ann Vokes told KentOnline: “It’s going to be a very sad day and the end of an era.”
Mrs Vokes said that 25 workers would be made redundant, including herself.
Mrs Vokes said one department, ladies clothing, will be moving to a new premises in Biggin Street under the name, Coastal.
De Bradelei Wharf is owned by JB Armstrong, which rents the building from Dover Harbour Board.
Its lease ended on April 7, but the authority let it stay on for three more months.
The closure was confirmed in April, with bosses saying the decision followed a huge rise in energy bills, making the outlet centre unviable.
Renovations were also needed at the centre.
Kieron Armstrong, director of JB Armstrong, explained that last winter’s gas bill had gone up five times from £3,000 a month to £15,000.
He added that £100,000 was needed for renovations and £50,000 for insulation.
An additional £100,000 was required for the structural work yet.
Some parts of De Bradelei Wharf were already empty by the time of the closure announcement in April.
The managers of the centre’s Boardwalk Cafe moved on by June to take over the Bank Street Cafe in Ashford.
The centre had been created from former shipyard sheds and was partly created to attract customers who were passengers from Dover Cruise Terminal.
That opened at Dover Western Docks in 1996.
The 10-unit outlet had brands such as Skopes, Pavers Shoes, Klass, Julian Charles, Gabbicci, Regatta, Weird Fish, Emma and Odyssey.
A spokesman for the harbour board: “We are still scoping out potential future uses for the site in order that we can be primed to take advantage of new opportunities.
“We will announce the next stage as soon as that’s confirmed.”
