130 years of sausages and smiles get the chop

Loyal customers bid a sad farewell to a Croydon butchers which closed in December after more than a century in business.

Kennedy’s opened its doors for its last trading day in December to a queue of customers eager to get their hands on a final batch of the butcher’s famous sausages.

The Croydon Guardian revealed in September how Kennedy’s was having to close its much-loved south London chain of nine butchers – including two in Croydon – due to increasing overheads and a drop in sales. The company had been trading for more than 130 years.

All but one of the butchers closed after a final day of trading on December 22, except for the Bromley shop which closed in October.

Chris Kennedy, one of the company’s directors, said: “It is sad for us to close after 130 years. We have got a lot of customers who have been coming to us for years – one customer has been coming to us since World War Two. And we have staff who have been with us for years.

“We’re not blaming anybody. It is just the way it works sometimes. We’ve done all right. We have been in business for 130 years, not many companies can say that.”

Since the announcement of Kennedy’s closure the Croydon Guardian has been inundated with letters and emails from disappointed customers from all over the country.

Brenda McCallan said: “My greatest memories go back to the late 50s early 60s when, every Saturday, my brother and I would each have a Kennedy’s steak pie.

“We would heat them up, make a hole in the centre and pour brown sauce into it, served with baked beans. Sounds disgusting now but was delicious at the time. Christmas dinner was never the same if we didn’t have Kennedy’s pork chipolatas on our plates.”

Rose Maries from Solihull in the West Midlands added: “Many years ago my mother travelled from Caterham to Croydon for the best sausages you can buy’. I now live in Solihull but have been able to get a supply of these wonderful sausages when I travel down to stay with a friend who lives in Coulsdon.”

Sally Wilkin from Sanderstead said: “I have lived Croydon for 46 years and Kennedy’s has always been a favourite in our family. A trip to Croydon is not complete without bringing home a few pounds of Kennedy’s sausages.”

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