A FAMILIAR face from Northwich's indoor market will be packing up her pots and pans after almost four decades in business.

Irene Shufflebotham has been the friendly face behind the counter at Chaddocks crockery stall for the past 37 years but next weekend she will say a fond farewell to her regular customers.

And although the 83-year-old is looking forward to having more time on her hands, Irene will find it a little difficult to get used to, especially as she has not had a day off during her working life.

She said: "I came to work for my brother Maurice 37 years ago and I've been here ever since. I ran the stall on the outdoor market until he retired 17 years ago, which is when I moved indoors.

"We're not as busy as we were which is partly why the stall is closing. I remember when I used to get here first thing in the morning and we couldn't get the boxes unpacked fast enough because there were always people waiting to see what new things we had.

"The girls from the Guardian office were always popping across on a Friday, asking me to put things away for them - lots of people did that."

She added: "It's been nice to meet so many lovely people through the years. I've seen customers come in as children, grow up and have children of their own.

"I'm very fond of Northwich town centre. I like to pop out to the shops and see what bargains are on offer."

Although Irene will spend her spare time with her family and keeping up with her active social life, she's not completely ready to go into full retirement.

She said: "My nephews have a shop in Congleton and I can see myself helping out there every now and then."

Chaddocks closes on Saturday, June 17.