Closing down signs appeared in the window of the outdoor equipment store last week, but no closure date was confirmed. The Comet can now reveal that Millets will depart the 26 Market Place store "at the end of October". The business has been a long-term Hitchin tenant, previously operating from a unit in Bucklersbury before moving to Market Place in 2002. Reacting to the news that the store will go after 24 years, one resident said: "Considering this is the only outdoor shop in Hitchin, it is bad news." "What a shame," a shopper said, with another agreeing: "A shame really - I remember you could get some good stuff in there."