Maidenhead High Street shop closes after suffering major water damage 

An eco-friendly shop in Maidenhead High Street has been forced to close after a deluge of rain caused extensive damage and left it flooded.

Filling Good, which opened in 2021, is in ‘dire straits’ after rain dubbed the town’s ‘wettest day in more than 100 years’ poured down from yesterday evening (September 22).

Water leaked through the 22 High Street store’s ceiling which damaged food products and packaging, as well as causing large pools of water to develop.

Store volunteer Tina Quadrino said: “We’ve lost a fair bit of stock.

“I don’t think it’s quite hit us yet because we’re all busy ringing insurance companies and landlords to try and get things sorted. I think it will probably hit us all a bit later on.”

Water leaking through the roof caused damage to products and pools of water on the floor.

A member of staff arrived at Filling Good early this morning to find ‘water everywhere’, Tina added.

Despite an army of volunteers stepping in throughout the day to aid a clean-up operation – the damage had been done.

“It’s mostly the storeroom behind till that’s unusable,” Tina said.

“Then, where the till is, is flooded and where most of the dispensers are for the pasta, herbs and spices - that whole area it was just raining down.

“It’s now kind of insidious little drips in some places which you just can’t function with because it's going to damage things while you’re not there.”

There are several flats above Filling Good whose occupants, Tina said, were ‘also in dire straits’.

Volunteers have removed the shop’s surviving products.

“It’s basically looking fairly empty,” Tina said. “It’s full of towels and buckets to capture any more leaks.

“We’re going to get more rain this week. We’ve fought this before and I don’t think there’s anything more we can do to make the store safe for customers and for us to operate in.”

Filling Good is a not-for-profit store aiming to help the environment, for example, through using eco-friendly paper packaging. 

But this packaging is susceptible to damp and water which has made the damage worse. 

Filling Good Co-founder Nelly Semaille said: “I think it’s quite ironic.

“We do everything to save the environment - from our perspective - and we are now struck with a typical climate change event which is extreme torrential rain.

“With climate change there is so much more water in the atmosphere and this has to fall somewhere.”

More images of water-damaged products and the roof at the store.

The future of Filling Good at 22 High Street remains uncertain, as discussions over a relocation site are ongoing.

Tina said: “Unfortunately we’ve had to take the decision to close.

“We’ve tried to protect as much of the stock as we can and we’re doing our best in that regard.

“But we don’t have any news at the moment in terms of when we will reopen again, but we are beavering away behind the scenes and looking at all of the different options.”

More updates are expected to be provided at a members' annual general meeting on Friday (September 27).

To help the store you can register as a volunteer.

For more information visit the store’s website or follow its social media channels.