MAJOR high street retailers are set to close 10 stores between them before the end of the month as shoppers cry of “another sad loss”.
Health and beauty chain Boots is shuttering three branches before the end of January.
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Meanwhile, Co-op, Clintons and HMV will welcome in customers for the final time within weeks.
It comes as figures from the Centre for Retail Research revealed over 10,000 shops and almost 120,000 retail jobs were lost in 2023.
The high street has been hit hard in recent years as shoppers increasingly turn to online retail, a trend made worse by the coronavirus pandemic.
High energy and wage costs have forced many businesses to shut up shop as well.
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Plus, surging inflation in 2022 and 2023 squeezed households’ budgets meaning they had less expendable money and retailers suffered.
Below, we detail all the stores set to close for good before the end of the month.
Co-op
Supermarket chain Co-op is pulling down the shutters on its branch in Peacehaven, East Sussex, on January 20.
A sign placed on the door of the store in the Meridian Shopping Centre informed customers of the closure.
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A spokesperson for Co-op said staff were being “fully supported” and signposted customers to the next nearest Peacehaven branch in South Coast Road.
Boots
Health and beauty retailer Boots is closing three branches before the end of the month.
Its store in Margate, Kent, will shut on January 20, according to local news reports, leaving the town with just one Boots location.
Meanwhile, two stores will close in Wigan, Greater Manchester, and Littlehampton, West Sussex, on January 26 and 29 respectively.
Flannels
The Flannels site in Market Place Shopping Centre, Bolton, will pull down its shutters on January 24, according to local news reports.
The store only opened in July last year, after taking on the unit from Tessuti.
A spokesperson for The Frasers Group, which owns Flannels, told The Sun it was “committed” to finding impacted staff new roles within the business.
Clintons
Clintons is closing its branch in Haverhill, Suffolk, on January 24.
It comes just months after the card retailer confirmed it would shut 38 of its stores to avoid collapsing into administration.
The chain currently runs 179 shops and employs 1,400 nationwide.
Peacocks
High street fashion chain Peacocks is set to pull down the shutters of its branch in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, on January 25.
Shoppers have spotted a sign on the window of the store in the Arc Shopping Centre, according to local news reports.
One shopper branded the closure “a shame”, adding it was creating “another hole in the high street”.
HMV
Entertainment retailer HMV is shuttering its branch in Boston, Lincolnshire, on January 27.
The site in the Pescod Square Shopping Centre is closing due to “shifting consumer behaviours”, a spokesperson said.
Residents have reacted to the closure with anger and frustration, with one crying: “Another sad loss for our town. We all need each other to survive! Tough times for us retailers.”
Jack Wills
Jack Wills, also owned by The Frasers Group, is closing a Bristol branch on January 30.
The site at the Galleries Shopping Centre launched a closing down sale last month, with 20% off items, according to local news reports.
Shoppers will be able to find the next nearest branch at The Mall in Cribbs Causeway.
What about store openings?
It’s not all bad news retailers, as some are opening branches in January.
B&M is opening two stores in Porthmadog and Washington on January 18 and January 26 respectively.
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Asda has said it is on track to open 1,000 more sites throughout the UK and Northern Ireland by March 2024 too.
Meanwhile, Wilko also has plans to open more stores in January after pulling up the shutters on branches in Plymouth, Luton and Exeter.
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