A new company has been formed after the collapse of a century-old family butchers.
A.E. Cross Pork Butchers Ltd, founded in Dewsbury in 1899, went into voluntary liquidation on Friday.
One of the directors, Joanne McGowan, great granddaughter of founder Albert Edward Cross, told how she tearfully pulled down the shutters on the family business at Dewsbury Market for the last time. All the staff were made redundant.
Cross’s had two shops on the market, a butcher’s and a deli.
On Saturday, the butcher’s shop in Corporation Street re-opened under a new company, Ridings Pork Butchers Ltd, set up by former Cross’s director Glenn Riding.
Glenn, 51, had worked at Cross’s since he was 14 and is Joanne’s cousin and great grandson of the founder.
Glenn’s daughter Alexandra confirmed Cross’s had ceased trading on Friday and the historic name was no more. The deli had been shut down.
However, she said her dad would continue to sell all customers’ favourite meat products including pork dripping, known as ‘mucky fat’, black pudding, belly pork and pies.
All the recipes would remain the same, she added.
Alexandra said she wanted to stress the shop was still being run by the Cross family and added: “My dad is the great grandson of Albert Edward Cross and will be selling the same products with the same recipes.
“We would urge the people of Dewsbury to come and support local businesses on the market, not just ours,” she said.
“People have been in tears because they think the business has been closed. The town has fallen into decline but we are still here trying and we need people to come and support us.”
Alexandra said the sign above the shop will change but could “take a while.”
Joanne posted on Facebook to say Cross’s had “no choice but to go into voluntary liquidation.”
She said the business had fallen victim to the decline of Dewsbury which was “devastating” for the family.
She added: “On a positive note my cousin Glenn has managed to find an investor to re-open the front stall. Unfortunately I wasn’t in a postion to do this and I’m sure I have done the right thing with the town in such decline.”
