RESIDENTS have reacted with dejection after a major retailer with 60 UK stores confirmed it is closing a branch within days.
Menkind, known for selling gifts and gadgets, is gearing up to shut its branch in the Old George Mall, Salisbury, Wiltshire.
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The shop has already launched a closing down sale advertising “everything must go” ahead of its last day of trading on January 31.
It comes after the branch opened just five months ago, in August last year, the Salisbury Journal reports.
The next nearest Menkind branch is in the West Quay Shopping Centre in Southampton.
A spokesperson for Menkind, which runs 64 stores across the UK, said: “We are always looking for opportunities to open new Menkind stores, unfortunately the store in Salisbury performed below our expectations, hence we have taken the difficult decision to close the store.”
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Residents have been left downbeat following the news the branch will close for good in a matter of days.
One said: “Well another one bites the dust,” while a second commented: “Blimey, very sad.”
A third added: “Always sad when a business goes.”
It comes after Menkind closed its branch in Teesside Park in Thornaby, North Yorkshire, on December 29.
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A spokesperson for the retailer told The Sun it was closing the branch after the landlord terminated the lease.
Why are retailers closing branches?
Recent figures from the Centre for Retail Research revealed over 10,000 shops closed for the final time in 2023, while 120,000 retail staff lost their jobs.
The high street has been hit hard as shoppers turn to online retail, while high inflation last year saw households’ budgets squeezed.
That, combined with high wage and energy costs for businesses, saw many forced to close stores.
In June last year, Boots announced it would be consolidating its portfolio of stores from 2,200 to 1,900.
The pharmacy chain said it would close stores in areas where there was more than one branch.
Meanwhile, retailer giant Wilko fell into administration, which saw thousands of staff lose their jobs and hundreds of branches close.
Card retailer Paperchase went bust at the start of the year too.
But it’s not all bad news for the sector, as Poundland has been expanding its store portfolio in recent months, as has B&M.
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Wilko has since relaunched online and some of its physical branches have reopened to the public as well.
Meanwhile, Paperchase has since opened hundreds of concession stores inside Tesco branches.
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