Aldiss is set to undergo the biggest sale its 120-year history with �5m worth of stock to be offered at reduced prices.

More than 40,000 product lines will be offered at discounts of up to 70pc off at both of the company's stores, in Oxborough Lane, Fakenham and Hall Road Retail Park, Norwich.

Aldiss, which has been furnishing Norfolk's homes since 1892, is itself undergoing a redesign.

The sale is being held to enable the two stores to be reorganised so that more floor space can be dedicated to the best-performing departments.

In preparation for it, both the Fakenham and Norwich stores will shut from close of business on Friday, September 7 and will then re-open one week later, on September 14.

During this week Aldiss staff will be working flat out preparing and pricing goods for the sale.

The sale then begins at 10am on September 14 and will continue until the Aldiss management is happy that stock levels are at a level where they can go ahead with the stores' redesigns.

Managing director Paul Clifford said: 'This will be the biggest sale that we have ever done. I would urge people to get to the stores as soon as they can when it starts, on September 14, to ensure that they don't miss out.

'I would also like to apologise in advance to our customers for the inconvenience caused by the one-week closure.

'Customers' tastes and shopping habits change all the time and we are going ahead with this redesign as a result of customer feedback, but unfortunately we have to close for a week to enable it to happen.

'We want to make sure that we always have the goods that customers want in our stores, and do not run out of stock, and also to ensure that customers have a pleasurable shopping experience and the departments are laid out logically in the stores so they can find what they need without any trouble.'

The redesign is being carried out at this time to ensure the stores are well-prepared for its busy Christmas and New Year trading periods.

Mr Clifford said: 'Despite the economic climate, Aldiss is doing well.

'We have not had to make any redundancies and we are continuing to recruit new staff, which is good news for the local communities in which we serve.'