Beloved 80s shopping hub to be DEMOLISHED in major regeneration as shops and restaurants enter final week of trading

A BELOVED 80s shopping hub that is home to a number of independent retailers and restaurants is entering its final week of trading. It was announced last year that the site would be regenerated after nearly four decades in business. Vendors at Gabriel’s Wharf have been told they must leave their stores at the end of the month Credit: Alamy Business owners at the riverside shopping destination Gabriel’s Wharf are entering their final weeks of trading as the site prepares to close. Based on London’s South Bank, the shopping hub has been home to over 20 independent businesses, including boutique clothing stores, art galleries and a diverse range of restaurants since 1988. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Gabriel’s Wharf’s not-for-profit owners, Coin Street, said the venue would be demolished, according to the BBC. The site will then be regenerated into a nursing home in around 10 to 15 years time. When the closure was announced at the end of last year, Coin Street said: “Gabriel’s Wharf, in its current form, has always been a temporary use of the site. “It was originally set up in 1988 using garage units, and the units have reached the end of their life. “Their condition demands we take action to regenerate the Wharf for the next 10 to 15 year.” Now, after 38 years of business, traders have been told they must vacate by September 27 ahead of its demolition. Most read in The Sun Gabriel’s Wharf was built in 1988 on the site of a former cash and carry warehouse Credit: Alamy Traders think around 130 jobs will be lost when it closes in its current form Credit: Alamy Charles Diallo, the owner of vegan restaurant Fed by Plants, told the BBC that “it’s totally unfair” and “we’re just going to have to close and hand them the key.” Co-owner of pottery and painting store Potters’ Yard Arts, Liz Mathews said, “We do feel very sad about the plants and trees going and everything being stripped back in this way, but the wharf still has its beautiful spirit and it will have while we’re here.” Originally a cash and carry warehouse, Gabriel’s Wharf was opened to the public in 1988 as a collaboration between Coin Street Community Builders and the operators of Camden Lock Market. When the market closes, traders estimate that around 130 jobs will be lost when Gabriel’s Wharf closes in its current form. Shoppers will have until September 27 to visit their favourite outlets at Gabriel’s Wharf before they officially close for the demolition. Comment now