We are closing our popular Manchester retro football shirt shop - but this was all part of the plan
Football shirt enthusiasts in Manchester have been given a bit of a shock with news that a popular shop is closing.
Stunner has announced they are closing their South King Street shop on Friday - but owners Serge Shcherbyna have told customers not to panic. That’s because they will remain an online presence and shirts can be ordered through their website.
The owners have been a popular presence in Manchester since opening up last year. Serge and Polina left their native Ukraine and their retro football shirt shop in Kyiv just before the Russian invasion back in 2022 and travelled around Europe.
They were able to do this by selling their remaining shirts to pay for accommodation. The pair eventually applied for the UK’s Homes for Ukraine scheme and were welcomed by a sponsor family in Macclesfield.
Setting out the reasoning behind the Manchester shop closure, the owners posted on Instagram. They wrote: “First of all, don’t panic, we’re only closing the physical store. You can still place your orders online and we’ll ship them to you worldwide. The original idea of the Stunner store in Manchester was always to have it for one year, regardless of how it goes, and we’re glad that we managed to pull it off. But why this time restriction?
'Ordinary Mancs, extraordinary stories'
You’re currently reading the new-look Manchester World and we’d love for you to have a look around the site and tell us what you think. We’ve got you covered however you digest your news. You can sign up to our new bumper Friday newsletter but if video is more your thing, you can follow us on TikTok
“Running a football store when there’s just the two of you means that other things have to be put aside. Though it’s lots of fun and the best way to meet like-minded people, but it’s also time consuming and very demanding. We know that it would mean sacrificing football travels and now the time has come to get Stunner back on the road.
“We want to take you to more football grounds and cities around the world, and who knows, maybe one of them will be a perfect fit for the third Stunner store. Come and have a beer with us Friday August 23 and grab a bargain on our final day at 9 South King Street.”
Talking to ManchesterWorld back in October, Serge said that the future plan was always to return to Kyiv at some point - should the invasion allow - or keep on moving. The shop held watch parties for the Ukrainian community during the Euros this summer.
He said: “Many people think that once we opened this business here, it means that we are tied to the place for decades. The truth is, we never get too attached to places. We always moved apartments at least once every year. We moved stores in Kyiv once as well, even within the same building. The same will happen here.
“If, let’s say, in one year’s time, we understand that it’s safe to go to Kyiv, me and Polina will sit down and talk. One year is more than enough to reach all the goals that we have set here. In terms of going back to Ukraine, that’s obviously top of my priority list right now.”