MORE than one hundred workers at a Capel Hendre clothing warehouse face a bleak Christmas after efforts to save their jobs failed.

In what has been described as “a hammer blow” for the area by local AM Rhodri Glyn Thomas, Dewhirst has confirmed that its state-of-the-art custom-built unit will close this Friday with all 114 staff made redundant.

Efforts to save the £3million facility had been ongoing since Dewhirst lost its contract as a Marks and Spencer distribution hub, but to no avail.

Dewhirst director Paul Hollins told the Guardian: “The site will cease all operations on Friday.”

Since the firm announced it had lost the Marks and Spencer contract in February, Carmarthenshire County Council, the Welsh Assembly Government and the county’s politicians have mounted a desperate bid to find a buyer for the site – as yet without success.

While an offer for the site is currently on the table, the unnamed prospective buyers have no interest in maintaining the facility in its current form, according to Mr Hollins.

“We have had an offer in for the building from a local business, but we are at very early stages in those discussions,” he said.

“The prospective buyer is not a garment warehousing company.”

Carmarthenshire East and Dinefwr AM Rhodri Glyn Thomas has been at the forefront of the year- long campaign to save the facility.

“This is a hammer blow to the Amman Valley and is news we all hoped could have been avoided,” said Mr Thomas.

“Having visited the factory, I know only too well how specialist this incredible facility is and how committed the staff have been to their work.

“Despite our endeavours to engage the Welsh Government and the local authority, a new buyer has not yet been found," he added.