A Station Avenue convenience store has been forced to close for three months after magistrates ruled it had repeatedly sold illegal tobacco and vaping products.
Coventry Magistrates Court granted the closure order against Tile Hill Mini Market on Wednesday 15 July 2026, following an application from Coventry City Council’s Trading Standards and Legal teams.
The order was made under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, and marks the third time the shop has been closed for this type of offending.
Trading Standards officers had investigated the premises on multiple occasions, uncovering large quantities of illicit cigarettes, hand rolling tobacco and vapes, including products hidden in a rear storage area. Tests found the tobacco to be counterfeit and duty evaded, meaning it failed to meet UK labelling rules such as plain packaging, while its low price pointed to unpaid duty and VAT.
The council said officers had tried to work with the business to bring it into line with the law, but warnings and advice were ignored. Magistrates also awarded costs to the council, which will be recovered from the business operators and the landlord.
Under the order, no one is permitted to enter or remain on the premises until it lapses at 11.59pm on Wednesday 14 October 2026. Anyone found breaching the closure could face imprisonment, a fine, or both.
Councillor John McNicholas, cabinet member for Community Safety and Cohesion, welcomed the ruling, saying:
“I’m really pleased that we have secured yet another closure order on this shop!” He added that the council was taking “a zero tolerance approach to any illegal activity by retailers” and urged residents to report suspected criminal activity.
West Midlands Police also welcomed the closure. Coventry South Northwest Inspector Dal Bal said officers had received reports the shop was “repeatedly selling illegal cigarettes and vapes”, adding that such sales “undermines legitimate businesses, evades regulations, and can pose significant risks to public health.” He said:
“The focus of our activity is always to reduce crime and disorder and make Coventry a safer place.
“We received reports that this shop was repeatedly selling illegal cigarettes and vapes. The sale of these products undermines legitimate businesses, evades regulations, and can pose significant risks to public health.
“Working alongside Council Trading Standards Officers, our teams have taken action to close these business premises. Our priority is to protect our communities and tackle those who repeatedly break the law by putting illegal profits ahead of the safety and wellbeing of the public.”
The council said the sale of illegal tobacco and vapes harms legitimate local businesses, fuels anti-social behaviour and can be linked to organised crime, while the lower prices risk encouraging children to start smoking or vaping.
National Trading Standards chair Lord Michael Bichard said the illicit tobacco trade was “driven by organised criminal gangs” and highlighted the impact of Operation CeCe, a National Trading Standards initiative run with HMRC since January 2021, which has taken 102 million illegal cigarettes, over 20,000kg of hand rolling tobacco and nearly 175kg of shisha products out of circulation.
Coventry Trading Standards is continuing to urge residents to report similar activity anonymously, either by searching “Coventry Trading Standards” online or visiting coventry.gov.uk/businesscompliancereportit.
