After 12 years in business, Victoria Street retailers Computer City was last night termed a casualty of the recession by company director Craig Clark.The closure, blamed on “unprecedented economic conditions in Bermuda”, will leave nine workers — eight of them Bermudian — out of the job.Five have worked with the company for more than a decade, Mr Clark said. He vowed to give severance packages beyond the legal requirement.“This business was my dream, after I spent many years working for other people,” he told The Royal Gazette.“Personally it is very sad. I will be looking for a job myself in the new year.”In spite of the store’s 15 awards since it opened, Mr Clark said shareholders had been left with no choice but to close shop due to declining sales.“It has been building for some time now, since 2008 in fact,” he added. “We kept hoping that things would improve. But it kept getting worse.”A “turning point” for the business had been the payroll tax hike of 2010, he said.“We started seeing customers — companies and individuals — leaving or downsizing after that,” said Mr Clark.“The majority of our business was always to companies, large and small, local and exempt. Even though the increase was later rescinded, it was too late. Many of our customers had already left or were in the process of doing so.”He added: “The business was my dream.”Computer City will be closed on Monday for stocktaking, with a closure sale commencing on Tuesday — until all stock, including furniture and store fittings, has been sold off. Customers are referred to the site www.cc.bm.