Yesterday was the final day of trading for Asda in one Suffolk town.

Asda bosses made the decision to close the Asda store on Fordhall Retail Park in Newmarket, because it had been under performing and was no longer viable.

Residents of Newmarket wanting to go shopping at Asda will now have to drive to the nearest Asda in Soham in Cambridgeshire to get their groceries.

Anthony Hemmerdinger, senior vice president of operations for the chain, said; “Despite the very best efforts of our colleagues in Asda Newmarket the store sadly continues to under perform in a tough market. The store site has recently reached the expiry of its current lease and so it made sense for us to consider its future.”

The store, which had been operating since 2011, had employed 39 people. A member of staff who was still working today at the store said: “We are all definitely very sad about it. Some of the staff are going to work at the other Asda stores in the region, but not everyone is.”

However, Newmarket will soon get a new supermarket. Aldi has announced that it will be opening a new store in Newmarket next autumn.The supermarket chain will move into the site of a former gasworks, next to the leisure centre, on Exning Road.