MAJOR retailers are shutting up shop across hundreds of UK high streets.
Some 15,000 stores are expected to close this year, according to the Centre for Retail Research.
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The mass retailer exodus includes hundreds of stores operated by popular household names – including Paperchase and M&Co.
Retailers are feeling the pinch due to high inflation, which was sitting at 10.5% in December.
Although that’s down from November’s rate of 10.7%, it’s still five times higher than the Bank of England’s target of two per cent.
High inflation causes a squeeze on people’s incomes – meaning many are forced to shop less.
Combined with high energy costs and a shift to shopping online after the pandemic – many high street shops have struggled to keep open.
Energy and fuel costs have all been hit by a pandemic hangover, the war in Ukraine and a shortage of essential workers which has put immense pressure on businesses.
Here’s a full list of retailers affected by soaring costs.
Boots
Boots has confirmed it will be closing three stores in the UK this spring.
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The stores are located in:
- Salford Shopping Centre, Greater Manchester – shutting February (no specific date confirmed)
- Church Street, Malvern – shutting March 11
- The Port Arcades Shopping Centre, Ellesmere – shutting March 11
Boots has confirmed these closures were pre-planned and no other branches are known to be shutting.
The chain has over 2,200 stores across the UK.
H&M
H&M has started closing branches across the UK as high street retail struggles.
The clothing brand’s closures include branches in Burton and Maidenhead.
It’s also confirmed another two closures will happen in Hartlepool and Isle of Wight.
These closures will be permanent.
Lloyds Pharmacy
The pharmacy chain is withdrawing its services from hundreds of Sainsbury’s stores.
Lloyds outlets will close across 237 Sainsbury’s branches, the supermarket said.
Sainsbury’s struck a deal to sell its pharmacy business to Lloyds Pharmacy in 2015 for £125 million.
At the time it meant around 2,500 Sainsbury’s pharmacy staff transferred to Lloyds.
But Lloyds Pharmacy has now confirmed all its Sainsbury’s pharmacies will stop operating – but it’s unclear when this will take place.
M&Co
The retailer, previously called Mackay’s fell in to administration for the second time in two years at the start of December.
Administrators at Teneo put the bust business up for sale with an auction deadline for interested buyers.
And while the M&Co brand has been bought by Yours Clothing, the stores haven’t.
An insider source also told The Sun that the sale of the brand means M&Co’s 170 shops will close forever, putting 1,910 jobs at risk.
Paperchase
Although no store closures are officially confirmed for Paperchase, the company started lining up administrators.
The business was in talks to secure a pre-pack administration deal.
However, Tesco saved the stationery chain‘s brand last week but hundreds of branches will still close.
We’ve listed all the Paperchase stores at risk of permanent closure.
Argos
Argos will be shutting all of its stores in the Republic of Ireland this year.
The chain has roughly 580 staff members in 34 stores across the country.
The closures will happen by June 24, but no other UK stores will be affected.
The company said it found that the investment required to develop and modernise the Irish part of its business was “not viable”.
You can read about where all the Argos branches in Ireland are in our guide.
Argos is owned by major supermarket Sainsbury’s.
It comes as Sainsbury’s announced recently that Lloyd’s Pharmacy is withdrawing its services from over 200 Sainsbury’s stores.
