Traders and shoppers in Dorset town claim victory for No Thanks Tesco campaign as retailer decides plan 'not workable'

Traders and shoppers in Sherborne, Dorset, have been celebrating with champagne and cakes – supplied by the independent wine shop and the neighbourhood delicatessen – following Tesco's decision not to open a store in the town.

Supporters of Sherborne's vibrant high street collected the signatures of 11,000 people – more than the town's population – who said they opposed the proposed opening.

They ran an imaginative campaign, even boarding up some storefronts for a day to give an impression of what they feared the town could become if the supermarket giant moved in. They enlisted celebrities including the former children's television presenter Valerie Singleton, who lives locally, to help with their No Thanks Tesco campaign.

"It's an amazing result," said Hannah Wilkins, of the Vineyards wine shop, who took part in the campaign. "I think Tesco have seen sense. Sherborne is a small community and we made it clear we didn't want a Tesco store here."

Wilkins said Sherborne, once a capital of the old Saxon kingdom of Wessex, was already served by two other supermarkets as well as a string of independent shops. "I'm not against Tesco itself but what they wanted to do would have ruined the town. It's been a great team effort to fight it."

She argued that the plan to open another supermarket on a site now occupied by a hotel would have put some of those independent shops out of business and deprived visitors of a place to stay. Sherborne is popular with tourists keen to visit its fine abbey, two castles and other Dorset landmarks such as the Cerne Abbas giant.

The UK managing director of Tesco, Chris Bush, attempted to play down the idea that people power had won the day. He said: "We've held meetings in the town, talked to supporters and opponents, discussed with the council and this week we have concluded it won't work.

"Protesters will celebrate, but in the end it was planning, not the protest, which drove this conclusion. Road access to the store site proved too difficult and expensive to resolve. The plan was not workable so we did not submit an application."

Bush claimed that supermarkets were often a convenient scapegoat for problems faced by the high street, but he claimed the reality was more complex and that supermarkets could revitalise some town centres.

Alison Nurton, of the Butterfly Bright haberdashery and craft workshop, said she was relieved that Tesco had pulled out. She was not surprised that the company was playing down the impact of the campaign. "They would say that. They don't want to give other towns the idea that campaigns like this can work," she said.

The author Joanna Blythman who specialises in food issues and acted as patron of the campaign, said she believed Tesco's decision had national significance, arguing that the proliferation of its stores was tarnishing its brand. "People are sick of Tesco. They are spreading like headlice through a nursery," she said. "This is a massive victory that should encourage groups across the country to realise they can fight against Tesco."