Isle of Wight shop to move after 28 years on Sandown High Street

Present Times, a specialist cards, gifts and photo frames store, was opened by Dawn Brown and her daughter Jo in 1994. 

The store can be found in the middle of Sandown High Street, next door to the opening of the derelict Ocean Hotel.

The troublesome hotel has seen much attention from emergency services in recent years, including a major fire in May 2021, which damaged Dawn and Jo’s store and saw it closed for a time for repairs to be made.

Present Times on Sandown High Street (Image: Google Maps)

• Read more: Areas of Ocean Hotel structurally unstable ­— 45 firefighters tackled the blaze

Present Times is moving to a new store to start anew, and stock transported to its new venue, found further up the High Street.

The new store is the current home of Colenutt Gifts, but with the owners of 12 years, Larry and Barbara, announcing their retirement in November, Present Times will be taking over.

A spokesperson for Present Times said: “Our lovely loyal customers, there’s news for us to tell. We have to leave our building.

“Sad as it is, to leave this place, we have to look ahead, so when we can (hopefully end of January), we’ll see you there instead!!”

Colenutts Gifts on the corner of St John's Road on Sandown High Street (Image: Google Maps)