This dog's had his last day at work (From Free Press Series)

This dog's had his last day at work

A POPULAR Abergavenny gift shop and coffee house has changed hands - but customers are delighted it will be run in exactly the same way.

New owners Jeff and Sandra Postle of Caerleon have kept on the 14 members of staff and say they have no plans to change anything at Focus in Frogmore Street, which Mike and Carol Redford have run for the past 16 years.

Their customers were sad to see them go, but some were even sadder about the retirement of Griff, the Redford's 14-year-old golden retriever.

Mike wrote a notice informing customers: "Griff is retiring, so regrettably Carol and Mike have to go as well."

Mike's sense of fun gained them newspaper headlines not long ago when he wrote a notice to say Carol's home-made soup was 'on holiday' for the summer. It prompted a deluge of postcards from customers purporting to be from 'The Soup'.

The couple plan to spend the next three months travelling around Britain with their caravan, and will then assess their future.

Said Mike: "We were dreading the fact that Griff could die while we were at the shop, because he and our other dog Jonty are so popular that some of our customers send them postcards.

"This has been the hardest week for us, saying goodbye to so many customers. But we'll be back - this time as customers."

The couple, from Brecon, have been members of Abergavenny Chamber of Trade and Commerce.