GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — Omega Sports opened its first store on Battleground Avenue in 1978.

It’s been a go-to spot for local athletes for decades. By summer, it will be closed for good.

Throughout the afternoon on Thursday, people came in and out of the store with bags in hand, supporting the business until its final day. Shoppers made friends here and knew every time they walked in, they would find what they needed.

“This was a place you have personal service, and people got to know you,” said one lady, who came to buy soccer gear with her family.

It’s why so many people love Omega Sports.

“I moved here in 2007…from the time that I moved here, this is where I got all my sporting equipment and backpacks and clothes and shoes,” Chris Chapman said.

Now, there’s a sign on the door telling customers all locations are closing because of supply chain issues and inflation.

Omega Sports partners with the U.S. Tennis Association, sponsoring tournaments around the Piedmont.

“It’s a brand that is just completely loyal to the sports lover in our community,” said Kelly Gaines, the executive director of USTA North Carolina. “I think that the institution had something that’s 40-some years old. it’s not going to go away without a huge hole left in this community.”

Gaines called it a professional and personal loss.

“You really are going to lose the guy who strung your racket and knew you liked it at 58 and not 56,” she said. “They knew the type of shoes that you wanted and how you wanted them to fit. Just that personal. That very hometown thing that you’re not going to get from a big box.”

The Battleground Avenue location is one of seven across North Carolina closing. The plan is to have all of them closed by early summer.

Right now, the store is offering 30% off for several items.