‘It’s been an absolute pleasure’ sob shoppers as travel agent with almost 500 branches abruptly closes site

SHOPPERS have been left sobbing as a travel agent with almost 500 branches abruptly closes a high street store.

Hays Travel has confirmed the permanent closure of its Oldham High Street store.

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It comes after a statement was released by Graham Wilks, branch manager at Hays Travel Odlham, on Facebook which read: “Tomorrow is a sad day as my amazing team are going to new pastures.

“Hays Travel on Oldham High Street is closing its doors.

“We would like to thank all our customers past and present for their support over the years.

“You have all been amazing to us at Oldham High Street.”

Reacting to the post, one local said: “It’s been an absolute pleasure.”

Another said: “Good luck to you all.”

The store closed for good on Thursday, February 29.

Hays Travel is the UK’s largest independent travel agent.

Founded in 1980 by John Hays, the company now serves customers from over 470 high street stores.

Jane Schumm, retail director of Hays Travel, said: “In the last year we have added several new branches to our retail network through acquisition and planned growth, and we are delivering a major refurbishment programme to improve energy efficiency and our customers’ experience.

“As we had two branches in Oldham we chose to focus on the branch in Spindles Shopping Centre, which we can now open seven days a week to better serve our customers.

“All staff affected by the closure have been relocated there or to other branches in the region.”

The County Durham-based business has expanded rapidly in recent years after it purchased all Thomas Cook Group stores following its compulsory liquidation in September 2019.

The company re-employed 2,500 staff left without a job.

In 2020, Hays Travel acquired Tailor Made Travel, a small Welsh chain of travel agents.

Last year, Hays Travel returned to strategic acquisition after an uptick in bookings.

It acquired 45 stores of franchisee Just Go in the North West of England in September and 16 shops in South Wales when it acquired Travel House.

Retailers closing stores in 2024

RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.

High energy costs and a move to shopping online are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.

Here’s a list of all the big-name brands closing stores this year:

• Argos – The brand announced plans to close 100 standalone UK branches last year as it looks to move away from the high street and focus on expanding its presence in supermarkets.
• B&Q – The chain has over 300 shops across the UK, so chances are you have one near you, but some stores have closed in recent months.
• Boots – The health and beauty chain announced that it would be closing 300 stores last July. Closures are ongoing and this will see the retailer’s estate reduced from 2,200 to 1,900 shops.
• Clintons – Clintons mulled plans to close 38 shops in a bid to avoid insolvency late last year. We’ve listed the stores affected.
• Costa Coffee – The caffeine giant has around 2,000 sites nationwide, so chances are you’ll have one near you. The chain has shut the doors to dozens of its sites recently. We’ve revealed which stores are due to close this year.
• Iceland – The supermarket has more than 900 stores but closed nearly two dozen sites in 2023, and more selected shops are due to shut.
• Lidl – The supermarket, which has 950 stores, is changing up shop locations, which has meant that some stores have to close. But the retailer is also looking to open 12 new supermarkets.
• M&S – M&S, which runs 405 stores across the country, has been closing a string of branches across the country in a blow for shoppers. It’s not all bad news, though, because the chain also has big plans to open dozens of new shops as well.
• Trespass – The firm announced in July last year that it was closing six branches, but more are on the way.
• WHSmith – The retail giant, which runs over 1,100 stores, has shuttered eight stores since March 2023, but more are coming.

Why are retailers closing stores?

Retailers have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.

High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.

The high street has seen a whole raft of closures over the past year, and more are coming.

The number of jobs lost in British retail dropped last year, but 120,000 people still lost their employment, figures have suggested.

Figures from the Centre for Retail Research revealed that 10,494 shops closed for the last time during 2023, and 119,405 jobs were lost in the sector.

It was fewer shops than had been lost for several years, and a reduction from 151,641 jobs lost in 2022.

The centre’s director, Professor Joshua Bamfield, said the improvement is “less bad” than good.

Although there were some big-name losses from the high street, including Wilko, many large companies had already gone bust before 2022, the centre said, such as Topshop owner Arcadia, Jessops and Debenhams.

“The cost-of-living crisis, inflation and increases in interest rates have led many consumers to tighten their belts, reducing retail spend,” Prof Bamfield said.

“Retailers themselves have suffered increasing energy and occupancy costs, staff shortages and falling demand that have made rebuilding profits after extensive store closures during the pandemic exceptionally difficult.”

Alongside Wilko, which employed around 12,000 people when it collapsed, 2023’s biggest failures included UK Flooring Direct, Planet Organic and Tile Giant.

The Centre for Retail Research said most stores were closed because companies were trying to reorganise and cut costs rather than the business failing.

However, experts have warned there will likely be more failures this year as consumers keep their belts tight and borrowing costs soar for businesses.

Last year, around 14% of insolvencies were in retail businesses, according to official figures.

This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk