Former owner's dismay as Eve & Ranshaw brass sign reported stolen

An antique brass sign has been reported stolen from the front of one of the country’s oldest family-run department stores in Louth, to the dismay of its former owners.

Eve and Ranshaw, established in the town in 1781, closed in February after a number of challenging years including lockdown closures, rising business costs and the cost of living crisis.

Owner Marcus Sandwith, whose father David owned the business until he passed away in 2019, has had plans to divide the three-story building into four approved by East Lindsey District Council.

But now June Sandwith, Marcus’s step-mother, has confirmed that one of Eve & Ranshaw’s brass signs, located above the postbox to the right of the store’s main entrance on Market Place, has been stolen.

"It’s such a mean thing to do,” she said, “This is a historical sign and the building and business is part of Louth’s heritage – why would someone do that?”

Mrs Sandwith is now appealing for anyone with any information, or CCTV footage that covers the building’s frontage, to contact police with information.Lincolnshire Police has confirmed the theft of a brass sign at Eve & Ranshaw in Louth.

Anyone with any information can contact police on 101, quoting Incident 124 of 14 July and crime reference number 23000435116.