New Poulton bike shop's windows smashed by cruel vandals two weeks before grand opening
Triathlete Scott Leadbetter, owner of Cybele Velo, and his dad Peter spent £850 relocating their bike sales and repairs shop from Coleridge Avenue, Blackpool, to the old Barclays bank building in Queens Square, Poulton.
New signage was installed and a large frosted window was replaced with clear glass on Friday, ahead of its opening in two weeks time.
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Hide AdBut just two days later, they were devastated to discover the front of the new shop had been smashed with paving slabs overnight.
Peter, 61, said: "Friday was a big day for us because we had all the signs put up and it was really coming together. But yesterday somebody broke all the windows. I was heartbroken when I saw it.
"It cost us a lot of money to replace the glass initially and we were so excited about opening up this big, panoramic view, only for it all to get smashed.
"You're trying to do something good for the community, but still you get this sort of thuggery."
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Hide AdThe cost of the damage to the shop's windows and floor is estimated to be around £1,000 - which Peter and Scott will have to pay for out of pocket, as the new business premises cannot be insured until its new security system is installed.
It is believed the windows were smashed shortly before midnight on Saturday, as a neighbour told Peter he heard glass breaking around that time, and saw two youths on bicycles fleeing the scene.
Peter said: "Hopefully they will get caught, but the damage they caused is already done.
"It's my son's business and we have been working on it for a solid month to turn it into something really special, and we have had great support from people.
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Hide Ad"It's knocked us both, but we have got to pick ourselves up. The community has been so encouraging. About 50 people stopped yesterday and said they were sorry about what had happened and that they would support the business, because there's nothing else like it in Poulton."
He added that the new Cybele Velo, which offers cycling, swimming and triathlon coaching as well as sales and repairs, will be opened on Monday, June 29, as scheduled.