Exact date high street giant with over 1,400 branches will close ‘ghost town’ store forever in huge blow to shoppers --[Reported by Umva mag]

A ‘GHOST town’ store of a high street giant will close forever in a huge blow to thousands of shoppers. The shop in the town of March, Cambridgeshire has revealed its closing date and is the latest in a string of major stores to abandon locals. PA:Press AssociationWHSmith is one of the most prominent high street brands but has seen many of its stores close in recent years[/caption] GettyThe closure of one of its branches in the town of March, Cambridgeshire will act as a huge blow to shoppers living there[/caption] GettyShops across UK town centres have been forced into closure as part of the decline of the high street[/caption] More than 20,000 residents in the area will lose out on access to the WHSmith branch when it shuts its doors for the final time. Many people took to Facebook to express their frustration with the closure and the state of the town’s high street. One user said: “I knew this would happen. God, our high street is dying…all That work seems like such a massive waste. “And on top of that, more jobs going. I hope all the staff find work ASAP.” Another said: “Shame as some books and mags will have to be bought online now. “Mind you almost always empty when I’ve been in there.” The WHSmith store, on Broad Street, is due to close on Saturday, January 25, 2025. Once closed, the nearest WHSmith branch available to locals will be in Wisbech, Ely and Peterborough among other areas. A spokesperson for WHSmith said: “We can confirm that the WHSmith store in March will be closing on Saturday 25 January 2025. “We are disappointed to be losing our presence in March and we would like to thank all our customers for their support and for shopping with us. “We are also extremely grateful for the commitment of our in store colleagues who we will support with this transition and redeploy to nearby stores, where possible.” Some users on Facebook slammed the high road’s long winded regeneration project for the closure, saying it turned the street into a “impassable chaotic hellscape.” One person commented: “Another one bites the dust, instead off spending all that money on paving slabs should spend it on helping new businesses.” Another added: “Always shopped in WH Smiths when in town, not so much now as it is too much hassle with all the work that’s going on.” A third said: “As people said the council doing what they are doing would ruin the town and it has. “Used to go there regularly. Don’t bother anymore.” Others, however, were quick to point out that the store had been empty for a long time anyway beforehand and that its closure was inevitable. One sharp observer said: “Sad to see this go as useful for stuff like pens/paper, but it’s always empty, and this was before the regeneration work. “I’ve been wondering for years how it stays open when it looks like it doesn’t make any money.” It follows a lengthy list of brands to leave the town for good. Clarks and Tesco Express both closed their doors to customers earlier this month, although the latter is due to reopen as a Budgens. Other shops, including M&Co, Halfords, Boots, and Carpetright have also shut in recent years. WHSmith operates over 1,400 branches across the world but has been hit badly by the decline of the high street. Earlier this month, one of its stores in Sale, Greater Manchester closed its doors for good. In April, the company announced it would be closing two stores in Huddersfield and Boscombe because it was no longer sustainable to continue trading there. Another store in South Cheshire was also closed down. WHSmith also confirmed it is “regrettably” closing its store in Street, Somerset, early next year. Before that, nine stores closed over a period of just 11 months: Crewe, Cheshire – March, 2023 Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire – March, 2023 Bicester, Oxfordshire – August, 2023 Manchester – December 2, 2023 Alfreton, Derbyshire – January, 2024 Ramsgate, Kent – January, 2024 Oban, Argyll and Bute, Scotland – February, 2024 Nantwich, South Cheshire – February, 2024 Margate, Kent – April 20, 2024 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

Sep 19, 2024 - 18:24

Exact date high street giant with over 1,400 branches will close ‘ghost town’ store forever in huge blow to shoppers --[Reported by Umva mag]

A ‘GHOST town’ store of a high street giant will close forever in a huge blow to thousands of shoppers.

The shop in the town of March, Cambridgeshire has revealed its closing date and is the latest in a string of major stores to abandon locals.

a store called whsmith has a sign that says stop and go go go

WHSmith is one of the most prominent high street brands but has seen many of its stores close in recent years[/caption]

a store front with a sign that says closing down

The closure of one of its branches in the town of March, Cambridgeshire will act as a huge blow to shoppers living there[/caption]

a store with a sign that says store closing

Shops across UK town centres have been forced into closure as part of the decline of the high street[/caption]

More than 20,000 residents in the area will lose out on access to the WHSmith branch when it shuts its doors for the final time.

Many people took to Facebook to express their frustration with the closure and the state of the town’s high street.

One user said: “I knew this would happen. God, our high street is dying…all That work seems like such a massive waste.

“And on top of that, more jobs going. I hope all the staff find work ASAP.”

Another said: “Shame as some books and mags will have to be bought online now.

“Mind you almost always empty when I’ve been in there.”

The WHSmith store, on Broad Street, is due to close on Saturday, January 25, 2025.

Once closed, the nearest WHSmith branch available to locals will be in Wisbech, Ely and Peterborough among other areas.

A spokesperson for WHSmith said: “We can confirm that the WHSmith store in March will be closing on Saturday 25 January 2025.

“We are disappointed to be losing our presence in March and we would like to thank all our customers for their support and for shopping with us.

“We are also extremely grateful for the commitment of our in store colleagues who we will support with this transition and redeploy to nearby stores, where possible.”

Some users on Facebook slammed the high road’s long winded regeneration project for the closure, saying it turned the street into a “impassable chaotic hellscape.”

One person commented: “Another one bites the dust, instead off spending all that money on paving slabs should spend it on helping new businesses.”

Another added: “Always shopped in WH Smiths when in town, not so much now as it is too much hassle with all the work that’s going on.”

A third said: “As people said the council doing what they are doing would ruin the town and it has.

“Used to go there regularly. Don’t bother anymore.”

Others, however, were quick to point out that the store had been empty for a long time anyway beforehand and that its closure was inevitable.

One sharp observer said: “Sad to see this go as useful for stuff like pens/paper, but it’s always empty, and this was before the regeneration work.

“I’ve been wondering for years how it stays open when it looks like it doesn’t make any money.”

It follows a lengthy list of brands to leave the town for good.

Clarks and Tesco Express both closed their doors to customers earlier this month, although the latter is due to reopen as a Budgens.

Other shops, including M&Co, Halfords, Boots, and Carpetright have also shut in recent years.

WHSmith operates over 1,400 branches across the world but has been hit badly by the decline of the high street.

Earlier this month, one of its stores in Sale, Greater Manchester closed its doors for good.

In April, the company announced it would be closing two stores in Huddersfield and Boscombe because it was no longer sustainable to continue trading there.

Another store in South Cheshire was also closed down.

WHSmith also confirmed it is “regrettably” closing its store in Street, Somerset, early next year.

Before that, nine stores closed over a period of just 11 months:

Crewe, Cheshire – March, 2023
Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire – March, 2023
Bicester, Oxfordshire – August, 2023
Manchester – December 2, 2023
Alfreton, Derbyshire – January, 2024
Ramsgate, Kent – January, 2024
Oban, Argyll and Bute, Scotland – February, 2024
Nantwich, South Cheshire – February, 2024
Margate, Kent – April 20, 2024

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 Paperchase, Cath Kidston, 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.

The Body Shop and Ted Baker are the biggest names to have already collapsed into administration this year.

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