Bungendore Village Leather will close after 35 years, with owners Brian and Wendy Lake announcing their retirement after failing to find a buyer for the long-running family business.

The couple said they had spent more than two years trying to sell the business so it could continue operating, but no purchaser came forward. A retirement sale has now begun ahead of the store’s closure.

The store had become a fixture in Bungendore, attracting customers from Canberra, across Australia and overseas for its range of leather goods, sheepskins and UGG boots.

Brian and Wendy said the business had weathered changing shopping habits, online competition, bushfires, the covid pandemic and rising operating costs over its 35 years. They thanked the local community for its support, saying many customers had become lifelong friends over the decades.

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