A sports shop that was rescued from closure thanks to the local community has temporarily been forced to shut.

Cliff Vassilou, who has been running Croxley Sports Shop for more than 27 years, recently had his shop revitalised after a quick-thinking campaign to save his business.

While the owner was raking in customers after fellow shopkeeper Linda Anderson launched an Instagram account for him, the sports shop is now temporarily closed.

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His account, @Cliffsports, announced: “Unfortunately Cliff’s shop is temporarily closed due to him being in hospital, we all hope he gets better soon!”

In April the 86-year-old hadn’t had a customer for three weeks, and The Kitchen Croxley owner helped him build a digital presence to bring people back to his store.

Nearly 2,000 people now follow the account and many members of the community, including Watford FC legend Luther Blissett, pledged to help.

After gaining media attention, comedian Stephen Fry also helped to spread the campaign.

For updates on Cliff’s situation, follow @Cliffsports

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