Retailers have confirmed that some store closures were a result of dwindling sales. However, others were simply business decisions or due to leases coming to an end – here we have rounded up all of the shops closing stores across the UK today
A handful of major high street favourites will be closing some of their brick and mortar stores for the final time today.
The last few years have been hard on the British high street and the current cost of living crisis is making trading through physical stores even harder as households tighten their financial belts. Retailers have confirmed that some closures were a result of dwindling sales.
However, others were simply business decisions or due to leases coming to an end. We’ve rounded up all of the shops closing stores across the UK today so you can check if your favourite retailer is affected.
M&S
M&S is closing its Queensgate Shopping Centre store in Peterborough on April 20. The site was initially going to be closed in January but was delayed. The store, which was John Lewis’ flagship store for 40 years, was taken over by M&S in 2021. The site had three floors and included a food hall, an M&S cafe, and a Bureau de Change.
The closure will see the closest M&S stores be the Serpentine Green Foodhall and Brotherhood Retail Park store. M&S regional manager Craig Burton blamed the closure on “changing shopping habits” which meant M&S had to “rotate” its store estate. The retailer is currently reducing the number of its “full line” stores from 247 to 180.
The closures as part of this plan will continue until 2028. Approximately nine more stores will reportedly follow the closure of the Peterborough branch. The next closure is set to be the retailer’s Neath branch in Wales next month.
Superdry
Fashion retailer Superdry will be closing its Dundee store today too. The branch in Overgate shopping centre will be shutting for good at 6pm. Superdry operated the site for 12 years and local reports say another retailer will be taking over the site by October. It is unclear how many jobs had been affected by the closure.
Earlier this week, Superdry announced it was delisting from the London Stock Exchange as part of wider restructuring plans. As part of the cost-saving plan Superdry will look into lowering rents on 39 of its UK locations and extend the maturity date on significant loans. It also plans to increase its sales by “enhancing product ranges” and “reallocating marketing spend”.
The retailer warned that if it did not with these plans, it could be driven into administration which could potentially put its hundreds of stores at risk of closure – 100 of which are in the UK.
The Works
The discount store the Works, which sells everything from arts and crafts to gifts, toys and stationery, will be closing down the shutters at its branch in Fforestfach Retail Park in Swansea today too. A spokesperson for the company said the retailer had “been unable to agree on suitable lease terms to stay” which meant the Swansea site had to close.
All staff at the Fforestfach Retail Park branch will be redeployed to nearby stores with the nearest branch being in the Quadrat Shopping Centre in Swansea. The spokesperson added: “We constantly review our property portfolio to ensure we have the right mix of stores in the right locations to best serve our customers.
“This occasionally means closing stores, whilst also improving our stores with refits or relocations if a more favourable site becomes available. We’re always on the lookout for new locations too and have a handful of new openings planned in the coming months.”
