Edwin Cassee is set to close the Broissais shoe store in Zandvoort at the end of December after being diagnosed with ALS. The shop, which has operated since 1944 and has been at its current location on Kerkstraat since 1966, is described as the village’s only shoe store and one of its oldest businesses. Cassee said the illness had made it increasingly difficult for him to work and that he was no longer independent.

The store is holding a sale as Cassee seeks to sell its remaining shoes. Customers and other local business owners have expressed sadness and sympathy, while Cassee is looking for a successor. It remains uncertain whether the store will be taken over.