A MAJOR retailer is to close 34 stores tomorrow in a move that will see it disappear from the high street forever.
Retailers have been feeling the pinch since the pandemic while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to soaring inflation.
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High energy costs and a shift to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll and many high street shops have struggled to keep going, and more closures are coming.
Argos will shut all 34 stores in the Republic of Ireland tomorrow.
Argos announced the closures in January, blaming the move on the investment required to develop and modernise the Irish part of its business.
Argos’ home delivery service closed to Irish shoppers on March 22, while click and collect will remain available until stores close.
Here’s the full list of Argos stores set to close in Ireland:
- Ashbourne Retail Park
- Athlone Argos
- Blanchardstown West End Argos
- Carlow Argos
- Castlebar Argos
- Cavan Argos
- Clonmel Argos
- Cork Mahon Argos
- Cork Retail Park Argos
- Drogheda Argos
- Dun Laoghaire Argos
- Dundalk Retail Park Argos
- Dundrum Argos
- Galway Argos
- Ilac Centre (Dublin) Argos
- Kilkenny Argos
- Killarney Argos
- Letterkenny Argos
- Liffey Valley Argos
- Limerick Childers Road Argos
- Longford Argos
- Monaghan Argos
- Naas Argos
- Navan Argos
- Omni Park (Dublin) Argos
- Portlaoise Argos
- Rathfarnham Nutgrove Argos
- Sligo Argos 4146
- St. Stephens Green (Dublin)
- Tallaght Argos
- Tralee Argos
- Tullamore Argos
- Waterford Argos
- Wexford Argos
Argos also has plans to close a further two standalone stores in the UK later this year.
Cardiff Bay’s Argos will close in July – but Sainsbury’s has not yet given an exact date.
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Argos will then close its Newport, Wales branch later on in the summer.
The retailer is moving away from the high street and expanding its presence in supermarkets, with concessions inside branches.
By the end of March 2023, the retailer had opened 25 Argos locations inside Sainsbury’s stores.
And by March 2024, Sainsbury’s expects to have 160 standalone stores and between 430 and 460 Argos counters inside Sainsbury’s supermarkets.
Argos isn’t the only store shutting the doors of some of its shops this month.
Cath Kidston was bought by Next after falling into administration – but this did not include its shops.
The brand is famed for its pretty floral designs and quirky vintage-style homewares.
Shoppers have spotted huge closing down sales in stores with as much as 70% off.
Discounts when shops are shutting usually ramp up the closer they get to closing their doors.
The locations set to close by Friday, June 30 are:
- Piccadilly, London
- Ashford, Kent
- Cheshire Oaks, Ellesmere Port
- York Outlet, York
There were also two concession stores in Colne and Sheffield that have already closed.
Other store closures
It’s been a tumultuous time for UK high streets with several popular chains including M&Co and Paperchase closing all stores this year.
Iceland has closed several supermarkets this year.
Plus, New Look is permanently pulling down the shutters on two of its shops in June and July.
Shops aren’t the only ones affected, major burger chain Byron Burger also fell into administration and closed nine restaurants immediately.
In December, pub chain Wetherspoons announced it would be closing a total of 39 pubs after being hit by soaring inflation.
We rounded up the full list of shops and chains disappearing from the high street this year.
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