Exact date M&S to shut store for good just months after closure of ‘delightful’ homeware branch
ANOTHER M&S branch is set to close for good within days.
Fans of the supermarket will only be able to shop in the store at Kingsditch Retail Park in Cheltenham until Saturday (June 8).
The supermarket giant announced the branch would be closing in February.
M&S has now said the shop shut on Saturday.
There are plans to open a new Food Hall in the nearby Centrum Retail Park between Dunhelm and The Range next spring.
An M&S spokesman said: “Although our Kingsditch store will close this weekend, we look forward to continuing to serve customers at our city centre store and new foodhall on the adjacent retail park opening next year.”
M&S shoppers in the area will be able to use the food store in the main town centre.
Upset fans have blasted the closure of social media.
One wrote: “They are walking away from a lot of trade, will not be going to town to start my shopping there instead.”
Another added: “Would like to thank all the staff for all help and been very loyal to the customers. It’s a shame it’s closing.”
It comes just months after M&S closed another “delightful” branch in Cheltenham.
The cherished shop had been a cornerstone of the community offering a range of homeware.
Taking to Facebook, one user cried: “It is a great loss to Cheltenham.”
Another wrote: “Another shop to close. Really hope someone else takes the lease on.”
And a third penned: “Will so miss the cafe. It was always busy and such lovely helpful staff and always so clean.”
Why are retailers closing shops?
EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre’s decline.
The Sun’s business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors.
In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping.
Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open. In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed.
The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing.
Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns.
Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead.
Boss Stuart Machin recently said that when it relocated a tired store in Chesterfield to a new big store in a retail park half a mile away, its sales in the area rose by 103 per cent.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Wilko, Debenhams Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Paperchase to name a few.
What’s increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online.
They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places.
The move comes as part of the high street retailer’s bid to create more flagship stores and food halls across the UK.
M&S promised staff in the Home store will be transferred to its town centre branch.
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Retailers closing stores in 2024
RETAILERS have been hit by soaring inflation and a downturn in spending due to the cost of living crisis.
High energy costs are a move to shopping online are also taking their toll.
While some high street shops have closed due to businesses opening up in different locations such as larger retail parks.
Shops may also close due to a number of other reasons, such as rising rents.
We explain which retailers are closing in 2024:
- 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, with two stores closing this year due to leases not being renewed. It has plans to open more in 2024 too.
- 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.