[ad_1]
MAJOR retailers will be closing several of their UK stores in August, as high street brands continue to battle with financial difficulties.
One brand in particular is battling desperately to survive, as it tries to prevent 33 of its branches from closing.
4
4
4
Soaring rent costs and declining footfall has made it even harder for businesses to turn a profit.
Rising energy costs have also forced retailers to shut their doors to save money.
Because of those rising financial burdens, some of Brits’ favourite stores are closing their doors.
Poundland
A staggering 37 Poundland stores will close over August, as part of a major restructuring.
Read More on High Street News
Ten stores will close on August 10, before a further 15 shut their doors on August 17.
The remaining 12 will close on August 24.
Darren MacDonald, retail director at Poundland, previously said: “It is of course, sincerely regrettable that our recovery plans include any store closures, but sadly that’s necessary if we’re to achieve our goal of securing the future of thousands of jobs and hundreds of stores.
“It goes without saying that we will work closely with colleagues through a formal consultation process in stores scheduled to close, exploring any suitable alternative roles.”
Poundland was sold in June as part of a deal with investment fund Gordon Brothers.
The deal included a major restructuring plan, which includes a major cash injection of £80 million.
Game
The gaming retailer runs 240 locations across the UK, but has decided to close five stores in August and September.
Game’s Basingstoke will shut on August 10, as well as its Southend store.
Meanwhile, its Metrocentre Shopping Centre, Gateshead, branch will close on September 7.
Also, its Bristol branch will pull the shutters down for good on September 25.
Morrisons
Morrisons has slashed over 3,600 jobs in a major shakeup of its operations.
A whopping 17 stores were closed down in May, including its popular Haxby, North Yorkshire, store.
Just a month earlier, 16 stores were closed.
Over the year so far, the supermarket’s workforce was reduced from 104,819 to 101,144.
4
Although Morrisons has not confirmed whether any stores will close down this month, the restructuring is ongoing.
Holland and Barrett
Holland and Barrett have more than 700 branches across the country, but, like many shops, it is closing down one of its major branches.
The Middleton Grange Shopping Centre, Hartlepool, branch will open for the last time on August 6.
Ahead of the closure, the store has slashed the price of some of its products by a whopping 75 per cent.
A spokesperson for Holland & Barrett told the Hartlepool Mail: “As part of Holland & Barrett’s £70m investment in the transformation of its stores, technology and new product development, we are continually reviewing our locations to provide our customers the very best health and wellness products and advice.
“This includes opening new stores, consolidating some smaller stores into one larger store, and in some instances, closing stores where there is no longer strong customer demand.”
RETAIL PAIN IN 2025
The British Retail Consortium predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
Research by the British Chambers of Commerce showed that more than half of companies planned to raise prices by early April.
A survey of more than 4,800 firms also found that 55% expect prices to increase in the next three months, up from 39% in a similar poll conducted in the latter half of 2024.
Three-quarters of companies cited the cost of employing people as their primary financial pressure.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: “The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025.”
Professor Bamfield has also warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector.
“By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer’s household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020.
Clintons
Clintons will be closing a store in the same shopping centre as Holland and Barrett.
The Middleton Grange Shopping Centre, Hartlepool, store will be closing on August 16 and shoppers have until then to take advantage of the store’s 30 per cent sale.
Another Clintons branch shut in Keighley in June with stock reduced by up to 20%, while two others closed in Halifax and Andover in April.
River Island
A huge number of River Island stores have been earmarked for closure, though the fate of the shops hangs in the balance.
Currently, 33 branches have been putting on the warning list while the company weighs up a restructuring plan.
A River Island spokesperson said: “River Island circulated its proposals for a Restructuring Plan to creditors on June 20.
“In combination with the company’s ongoing Transformation Strategy, the Plan is a proactive measure to place the company on a firm footing.
“We have been having positive conversations with key stakeholders and are confident that we will achieve approval of the Plan in the coming days.”
Aldi’s brand new stores
Unlike most supermarkets, Aldi is planning to open MORE stores.
The brand has earmarked 11 areas for new stores.
Jonathan Neale, managing director of national real estate at Aldi, said: “We’re now opening an average of one new store a week for the rest of 2025, showing just how ambitious our plans are to build a store network that will help us reach millions of new customers.”
This is the full list of 11 new stores confirmed as opening:
- Airfields, Welsh Road, Deeside
- Rockingham Road, Market Harborough, Leicestershire
- Fulham Broadway, London
- Pacific Drive, Eastbourne, East Sussex
- Mafon Road, Nelson, Treharris
- Ashford, Waterbrook, Kent
- Commercial Street, Shoreditch, London
- Philadelphia Lane, Houghton le Spring, Tyne and Wear
- Mill Road, Meadowfield, Durham
- Pendle Drive, Litherland, Liverpool
- Ringwood Road, Brimington, Chesterfield
[ad_2]
READ SOURCE
