The Closure Order was served by Trading Standards on Thursday 3 October as part of Operation AVRO, an initiative in partnership with GMP to tackle anti-social behaviour and the sale of illegal goods.
Since March 2, 2023, more than 750 illegal vapes, 950 packets of cigarettes and 7kgs of hand rolling tobacco have been seized from the premises.
On one visit, with the help of sniffer dogs, a concealment of illicit tobacco was found hidden in a void behind some panelling in the rear store area.
Illegal vapes were also found under the shelving units in the shop itself.
Trading Standards acted on several complaints from members of the public that the shop was selling illegal products as well as reports of underage sales of vapes.
The Closure Order will remain in place for three months.
Cllr Sue Haworth, Bolton Council’s Executive Cabinet Member for Regulatory Services said:
“The is the fourth Closure Order in Bolton and a reminder of our zero-tolerance approach to the sale of illegal tobacco and vapes in Bolton.
“Not only will we remove the goods, but we will also close the premises which of course has serious financial implications for a small business.
“Thank you to those members of the public who report this criminality which enables us to severely disrupt the sale of illegal goods.”
