Small businesses say they fear for the future after a nearby supermarket giant started offering the same dry-cleaning services.

Sew Select and Elegant Look, in Queens Road, Buckhurst Hill, have raised concerns after the move by Waitrose, which has had a store in the street for 30 years, means there are now four dry-cleaners within a short distance.

Sew Select is situated four shops away from the supermarket and owner Warren Bartlett says the future is bleak.

He said: “This is going to massively take away our business. There will be a huge difference.

“They are not thinking about us, they’re going to put us out of business.

“A few hundred pounds lost a week in a small business like this and that’s it, we’ are done.”

Elegant Look owner Sohail Qureshi is also expecting tough times ahead.

He said: “I don’t think there will be any business left for us.

“There will be too many cleaners, it’s not good for anybody.

We are struggling already with the competition. This will be the end if it carries on.

“It should be stopped.”

Waitrose branch manager Amy Dexter said the shop is responding to demand.

 She added: “We introduced the service in response to customer requests from across the country.

“We want to deliver a shopping experience that attracts more people to the local area who – as well as shopping with us – will bring increased trade for other businesses.”