A north-end Halifax grocer has closed for good, citing not enough retail sales.

Home Grown Organic Foods operated a small shop on Gottingen Street for the last year and a half. The business also offered home delivery for the last 15 years.

Geordie Ouchterlony built the company from the ground up. The closure leaves him and eight part-time employees out of work.

"It's a pretty sad day," said Ouchterlony. "This has been building for some time. This is not a decision we made overnight."

Ouchterlony bought the space on Gottingen Street and spent three years renovating it. He said he'd like to sell the building and see another business move in.

Home Grown Organic was one of the only shops to offer fresh produce in north-end Halifax until the Community Carrot opened this fall. Ouchterlony said that hurt his business.

"They have a lot of community support, a lot of media attention, a lot of municipal support," he said. "We could've used some of that."

Marla Cranston has been a Home Grown customer for the last decade. She said she's sad to see it close.

"Having fresh local organic veggies and fruit on my doorstep every Saturday was a pretty great thing. I'm sure I would have malnutrition right now if it wasn't for these guys," said Cranston.