CHEAP Wall's icecream sales to the Gloucester masses have been frozen just as temperatures start to soar.
The factory shop at the Unilever site, which sells everything from Vienetta to Magnum at a fraction of the prices supermarkets charge, has closed its doors to the general public, to the sadness of many.
One customer allegedly shut her fingers in a freezer there and a company spokesman confirmed there had been a complaint, which is being investigated.
But she said the shop's closure to external customers was down to 'a number of reasons' and was in line with wider company policy.
The Unilever outlet in Barnwood had sold budget lollies to families for a decade. It can still be used by employees.
The news will come as a blow to dozens of families who enjoyed stocking up on frozen treats for bargain prices. Hucclecote customer Don Blake claimed he was told by staff on site it had closed after a customer complaint when he went to express his sadness at the shop's closure. He said: "All I was told was that somebody had an accident with a freezer door and it landed on a customer's fingers.
"Getting bargain icecreams for the family has now ceased because of it."
Mr Blake, who has bought icecreams from the shop for more than a year, claimed a sign had been placed outside the outlet to say it had closed due to 'customer incidents'.
Unilever makes and sells products under more than 400 brand names including Wall's icecreams – from Solero to Cornetto. Many of those sold at the shop near to the Wall's roundabout were either 'seconds' or those destined for the European market.
Unilever spokesman Katya Bridges said: "No legal proceedings have been issued, but we have received a complaint which we are investigating.
"We have had a shop on site for a number of years to give our employees the opportunity to buy icecream and other products cheaply and conveniently. The shop relocated and opened to the public approximately 10 years ago.
"However, earlier this month, in line with our other factories around the country, we returned the shop to serving Unilever employees only.
"This decision has been made for a number of reasons, including its suitability as a public shop on an increasingly busy manufacturing site and stock availability for our employees at peak times.
"We are sorry for any disappointment this may cause to local residents who have visited the shop in recent years. We would like to reassure the community that we will still continue to provide icecreams to a large number of charities in the region, as we have done for many years."
