J & P Grocery store to close permanently Tuesday

Shoppers say goodbye to J&P Grocery From CTV Kitchener's Heather Senoran: A popular grocery store in downtown Kitchener closed suddenly on Tuesday.

"It is with great sadness and disappointment that Johnny and Pepper announce that this will be the last day of operations for J&P Grocery."

That's how an Instagram post from the downtown grocery store began to break the news that it would be closing its doors after serving lunch for one last time.

After two and a half years, the longtime hospitality duo will no longer sell artisan goods to a downtown core that's been rapidly building skyward.

The news came on Tuesday.

"We regret the sudden nature of our closing but we are moving on to take care of ourselves, each other and our family," the post goes on.

In a post on its Instagram, Coven Market, a vegan specialty shop, which had recently opened another location called the Annex at J&P, echoed the news.

In their post, Coven says it's "due to family health concerns" that prompted the closure.

"They deserve our respect and their privacy, so that is all we are comfortable saying on the closing of J & P at this point," the post goes on.

Coven says it is looking at opportunities to open in Kitchener again at some point in the future.

J&P's normal Tuesday hours are from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m., but the Instagram post says that it'll close its doors for good in the late afternoon.