Former Palmers' boss happy with plans for historic building

Those are the words from the last of the Palmer family to manage the Great Yarmouth department store before the building closed for good in 2020.

The building will get a new lease of life as it is set to be transformed into a learning centre, library, registry office and Citizens Advice Bureau.

Refurbishment works are expected to start in the early summer of 2023 with a completion date of September 2024.

A glimpse of the planned interior of the new learning centre based inside the former Palmers building in Great Yarmouth. (Image: Great Yarmouth Borough Council)

Bruce Sturrock, 73, revisited his family's former store after the inside had been cleared out to make way for renovations for its new purpose as a learning hub and library.
Mr Sturrock said: "It's been very sad to see it stand empty for so long.

"And if it's not going to be a store, I can't think of a better use of the building. Once again, it can be a hub in the heart of the town."

The stairway inside the emptied former Palmers building in Great Yarmouth town centre. (Image: James Weeds)

Mr Sturrock visited the store with representatives from Great Yarmouth Borough Council and the team who are leading the transformation. He said he was grateful the council were working "sympathetically" with the building.

"I was very pleased the council is still interested in the building's history and treating it with sympathy," he said.

"I was particularly pleased with the plans to make the skylight a focal point in the building. We had originally restored it in 2000 and it is a beautiful feature."

The skylight inside the empty Palmers building in Great Yarmouth. It is set to become a prominent feature in the building's new life as a learning centre and library. (Image: Great Yarmouth Borough Council)

Last week, planners said artefacts from the Palmer family's 181-year connection with the premises - including a signature "P" on surviving stained windows - were set to be preserved.

Mr Sturrock said once he was inside the building, it was difficult to look back on his time as managing director as it "looked completely different".

At the helm of the department store from 1980 until 2011 - and remaining its chairman until Beales bought the store in 2018 - Mr Sturrock said there were "thousands of stories" to tell.

FLASHBACK: The then-Prince Charles visited Palmers department store in Great Yarmouth in 2012. (Image: James Weeds)

His personal favourites were visits from the Royal Family.

"The 175th anniversary was a true highlight," he said.

"Prince Charles was a lovely guest and he made a point of going round and talking with people. He'd certainly done his homework.

"It was also fantastic to welcome Princess Alexandra for the 150th anniversary in 1987.

"That was a wildly successful event and we were delighted when she agreed to come along."

Mr Sturrock said other highlights included a tightrope walker making the journey from Palmers to Market Gates following the market place's pedestrianisation, and the department store's hustle and bustle of activities in the build-up to Christmas.

FLASHBACK: A tightrope walker achieved a daring feat over Great Yarmouth marketplace. (Image: Archant)

Mr Sturrock said he and his family were "devastated" when the department store's final owner - Beales - went into administration in 2020.

"We really thought we were leaving the store in good hands," he said. 

"But it ended in disaster only a little over a year later. It was so sad to see people lose their jobs.

"We prided ourselves on being a family business and being close with staff, and they were just as much a part of the store's heritage as my family was."

FLASHBACK: Bruce Sturrock outside Palmers department store. (Image: Archant Norfolk © 2014)

Mr Sturrock said he sees the repurposing of the former department store as "an exciting sign of things to come".

"The town is trying hard to improve," said Mr Sturrock.

"We're lucky to get this money, and I hope the town centre is revitalised when everything is complete."

Bruce Sturrock hopes to see his family's former department store become a hub in the town centre. (Image: James Weeds)

Mr Sturrock said he thinks having more of a student presence in the town would be beneficial.

"If the town centre saw more students both living and using the space, I think the area - and the nighttime economy - would really benefit.

"It could be a wonderful thing."

Mr Sturrock further commended on the council's plans to preserve some of the historical features of the building by adding: "I would love to see former staff members from Palmers involved in the opening somehow.

"It would be nice for the building's heritage to be acknowledged, and the staff were a big part of it."