THE owner of a York fruit and veg shop has blamed supermarket Sunday trading and high parking charges for the closure of his city centre business.

John Mannion, 64, whose Blake Street shop bears his name, closed the store on Saturday after 25 years of custom and said he will re-open this summer as a deli and café.

Despite his family being in the York grocery trade since 1905, he said selling fruit in the city centre was now too hard.

He said: “We used to do very well, but the last five years have been the worst. Since Sunday trading the supermarkets have got their own way over everything.

“The weather over the winter was horrendous too, people just couldn’t walk down the street. So the shop has got to go.”

He said another reason for the change of business was the high cost of parking in the city centre.

Mr Mannion said: “It’s no good for people to pay £6 or £9 to park and do their shopping. The money should be in their shopping basket.”

After closing his doors on Saturday, a major refurbishment of the interior of the shop is now under way and the new-look business will hopefully open in three weeks under the new name of Mannion & Co.

He said: “We are heading for a deli, a small section of fruit and a café and we will be selling specialist bread.”

Mr Mannion said he will also drafting in his chef son-in-law to help with the business, and will continue to run a fruit and veg stall in York Market.