A leading national retailer has unexpectedly shut its doors after its landlord repossessed the property.

Hobbycraft in Strood Retail Park has suddenly closed in what is being reported as a temporary move.

Notices in the shop windows reveal property owner Ropemaker Properties Ltd has retaken possession of the unit.

It has also been secured to prevent access, with landlords allowed to do this when a tenant breaches the terms of the lease.

It opened in 2021, but the closure comes a month after it was confirmed nine “loss-making” stores will be axed – including one in Canterbury.

126 jobs are set to be axed, while negotiations over rent reductions are currently underway with the landlords of 18 other stores.

Strood was not one of those earmarked for closure.

“I went today and was disappointed to see it closed,” said one customer on Facebook yesterday evening.

“The staff there are lovely and always really helpful, I hope this is resolved soon for their sake,” added another.

Community page The Sew In Group said on Facebook: “We were sad to hear the recent news about Hobbycraft Strood - it’s always a shame when changes affect a well-loved creative hub.”

Hobbycraft bosses apologised for the inconvenience, with customers advised to visit the nearest alternative branch in Maidstone.

There are now seven shops in Kent; Orpington, Canterbury, Crayford, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells, Ashford and Thanet.

A spokesman for Hobbycraft said: “This is an unexpected development and we are still trying to understand why our landlord has decided to attempt to evict us from our premises.

”Hobbycraft is currently going through a process nationally, under which 9 of our 124 of stores will close and 16 are under review as we negotiate with landlords to make them viable.

"I can confirm that the Rochester store is in neither of these categories, it is trading well and payments to landlords are up to date.

“We don’t understand why the Rochester landlord has chosen to act in this way, and we look forward to receiving a full explanation from them. Their actions have caused significant upset to our colleagues and disrupted trading at one of our sites.

"We have redeployed the Rochester colleagues to another site while we ascertain what is going on, and we are supporting them during this time."