A JEWELLERY chain with 89 stores has issued a major update after unveiling plans to close a swathe of branches.
Beaverbrooks has confirmed when it will shut seven sites across March and April following a review.
Five shops are closing in England: Birmingham Fort, High Wycombe, Huddersfield, Croydon and Sutton Coldfield.
Meanwhile, two Scottish branches are shutting, in East Kilbride and Dundee.
This is the full list of stores shutting and their closure dates:
- East Kilbride, Scotland – March 16
- Dundee, Scotland – March 16
- Birmingham Fort – March 23
- High Wycombe – March 23
- Huddersfield – April 5
- Croydon – April 6
- Sutton Coldfield – April 6
It comes after The Sun exclusively revealed Beaverbrooks would be closing the seven branches deemed “no longer commercially viable”.
Anna Blackburn, managing director for the jewellery chain, said the sites would close following a business performance review.
She added: “At Beaverbrooks we pride ourselves on our people-first culture and open, honest relationships with our colleagues.
“Our directors delivered the news in person to each team member.
“We aim to retain as many colleagues as possible within other Beaverbrooks stores or the wider business, and are working closely with each individual affected to provide them with options for their specific needs, supporting them with their next steps whatever they may be.”
She added that the retailer plans to open a new store in Harrogate next Spring while some of its branches are being renovated.
Beaverbrooks said in its most recent accounts filed on Companies House profitability in the 53 weeks to March 2, 2024, had “reduced considerably” despite an increased turnover.
Turnover is the total amount of money made by a business over a certain period of time.
Beaverbrooks said the drop off had been caused by an increase in worker’s pay, property refurbishments and repairs.
The seven upcoming closures come after Beaverbrooks shuttered a store in Romford, London, last March.
It’s worth bearing in mind, retailers often close branches and open them in other areas based on customer demand and trends.
RETAIL SECTOR STRUGGLES
The retail sector has been hit hard in recent years as the trend towards online shopping intensifies.
The most recent data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows online retail sales increased from 5% of all retail sales in 2008 to 27% in 2022.
Shoppers have also been feeling the pinch in recent years following sky-high inflation which has dented their wallets and purses.
It has led to a number of major retailers having to close stores to shore up their finances.
Boots announced in 2023 it would shut 300 of its branches in a bid to slim down its high street presence while WHSmith is in talks to sell off 500 of its stores.
Jewellery chains have been forced into closing branches as well.
Claire’s has closed a number of stores in recent years, including in Gillingham, Nuneaton and Newton Abbott.
T H Baker also shuttered a branch in Cambridge in May last year.
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.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs from April 2025, will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40.
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.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Carpetright, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Paperchase, Ted Baker, The Body Shop, Topshop and Wilko 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 Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
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