A HAMPSHIRE convenience store is to close in under a month after company bosses reported a “poor trading performance”.

The Co-op in High Street West End will shut on August 24 when all 14 members of staff will be offered positions at another of the company’s outlets.

It comes just 18 months after Asda opened a supermarket nearby in a £500,000 conversion of the former Netto store. The rival retail giant promised to employ 18 people and stock 10,000 grocery items when it was unveiled in later 2011.

A spokesperson for The Co-operative Food said: “We can confirm that our store on the High Street in West End will be closed from Saturday, August 24.

“Staff at the store have been informed of the decision, which has been taken with the greatest reluctance and is due to the store’s poor trading performance.

It is not, in any way, a reflection on the commitment and hard work of the store team.

“We are confident that we will be able to offer a position at another Co-operative Food store in the local area to all 14 members of staff.”