Putting things plainly, it’s a bleak time for Britain’s high streets. Stores have been shutting up shop left, right and centre over the past few years. And now it appears that even more are joining Debenhams, Woolworths and Topshop in the graveyard of high street retailers.
It’s not all terrible news, though. Some companies are simply closing a bunch of their stores so that they can prioritise expansion elsewhere. We’ve got all the information on how your local high street is expected to change over the next twelve months.
The full list of Boots stores closing in 2024
In 2023 it was announced that 300 Boots stores would disappear by the end of the year. Now, in hopes to ‘consolidate the business’, the pharmacy chain has announced another string of closures in 2024.
It has been confirmed that these Boots stores will shut in 2024.
- Cliftonville, Kent (Jan 20)
- Pemberton, Wigan (Jan 26)
- Hough Lane, Layland, Lancashire (Jan)
- Rhos on Sea (Mar)
- Colwyn Bay (Apr)
- Caerleon Road, Newport (no specified date)
- Chepstow Road, Newport (no specified date)
- Carlyon Road, St Austell, Cornwall (no specified date)
- St Blazey, Cornwall (no specified date)
- Front Street, Prudhoe (no specified date)
- Lurgan (no specified date)
- Chard Road, Plymouth (no specified date)
- Mannamead Road, Plymouth (no specified date)
- Claremont Street, Plymouth (no specified date)
- Portland Walk, Barrow (no specified date)
Gestridge Road, Teignbridge (no specified date)
Find out more about all the Boots store closures in the UK here.
The full list of Wetherspoons closing in 2024
This pub stalwart announced that it is putting dozens of its sites up for sale. Most of the closures are pubs that have other Wetherspoons nearby. Some are on sale, some are 'under offer' and 41 others officially closed for good in 2023. These are the Spoons still up for sale:
- The Pontlottyn, Abertillery
- The Ivor Davies, Cardiff
- Spa Lane Vaults, Chesterfield
- The Gate House, Doncaster
- The Market Cross, Holywell
- The Regent, Kirkby in Ashfield
- The Mockbeggar Hall, Moreton
- The Hain Line, St Ives
- The Sir Norman Rae, Shipley
- The Sir Daniel Arms, Swindon
- The White Hart, Todmorden
- Lord Arthur Lee, Fareham
- The Plough and Harrow, London
- Resolution, Middlesbrough
- Sennockian, Sevenoaks
According to CBRE group and Savills, which are covering the sale, these are the ‘Spoons ‘under offer’:
- Asparagus - Battersea
- The Saltoun Inn - Fraserburgh
- The Percy Shaw - Halifax
- The Alfred Herring - Palmers Green
- Wrong ‘Un - Bexleyheath
And these are the sites that have officially shut up shop:
- The John Masefield, New Ferry
- Angel, Islington
- The Silkstone Inn, Barnsley
- The Billiard Hall, West Bromwich
- Admiral Sir Lucius Curtis, Southampton
- The Colombia Press, Watford
- The Malthouse, Willenhall
- The John Masefield, New Ferry
- Thomas Leaper, Derby
- Cliftonville, Hove
- Tollgate, Harringay
- Last Post, Loughton
- Harvest Moon, Orpington
- Alexander Bain, Wick
- Chapel an Gansblydhen, Bodmin
- Moon on the Square, Basildon
- Coal Orchard, Taunton
- Running Horse, Airside Doncaster Airport
- Wild Rose, Bootle
- Edmund Halley, Lee Green
- The Willow Grove, Southport
- Postal Order, Worcester
- North and South Wales Bank, Wrexham
- The Sir John Stirling Maxwell, Glasgow
- The Knight's Templar, London
- Christopher Creeke, Bournemouth
- The Water House, Durham
- The Widow Frost, Mansfield
- The Worlds Inn, Romford
- Hudson Bay, Forest Gate
- The Saltoun Inn, Fraserburgh
- The Bankers Draft, Eltham, London
- The Sir John Arderne, Newark
- The Capitol, Forest Hill
- Moon and Bell, Loughborough
- Nightjar, Ferndown
- General Sir Redvers Buller, Crediton
- The Rising Sun, Redditch
- The Butler's Bell, Stafford
- Millers Well, East Ham
- The Coronet, London
Find out more about all the Wetherspoons closures in the UK here.
The full list of Costa Coffee cafes closing in 2024
Costa said farwell to a bunch of its coffee shops in 2023 and there are a few more due to follow. It's not all bad news for the chain, though. In 2023 it opened up a brand new drive-thru site at Lowestoft’s North Quay retail park. Here are the outlets set to disappear this year.
- Chiswick High Road, London (by Feb 6)
- Bruntsfield Place, Edinburgh (Feb 14)
Find out more about all the Costa Coffee closures in the UK here.
The full list of Clintons stores closing in 2024
Clinton Cards (aka Clintons) is taking measures to avoid going into insolvency. A fifth of the retailer’s stores are set to be affected – that’s 38 out of 179 branches. Sites in in Kirkcaldy shopping centre, Whitehaven, Cumbria and Bolton's Market Street all shut down last year. We don't know many of the other shops due to bite the dust, but Clinton's Haverhill branch in Suffolk is set to close on January 24.
Find out more about all the Clintons store closures in the UK here.
The full list of Argos stores closing in 2024
Argos plans to close 100 UK sites in 2023 and 2024 as it focuses on expanding its presence in supermarkets instead of the high street. Over the last 12 months it has closed 45 shops but opened up 25 inside Sainbury's stores. We haven't got a full list of the branches due to close this year but here are the ones we do know.
- Overgate, Dundee (March)
- Kingstown, Carlisle (March)
Find out more about the Argos closures here.
Which high street stores closed in 2023?
Wilko
How could we forget the Wilko saga of 2023? All 400 of its branches closed for good after it went into administration and for a hot minute, we all believed that it woud never be coming back. But in a welcomed twist of fate, it was bought by The Range, which plans on opening 300 new Wilko stores. So keep an eye out!
Find out more about the Wilkos closures here and the Wilko openings here.
Iceland
Iceland closed a bunch of its UK stores last year, including branches in Rhyl, Bristol, Harrow, Swansea, Newport and Portsmouth.
Find out more about all the Iceland store closures in the UK here.
Marks and Spencers
In an effort to save £300 million, M&S announced in 2023 that they would be closing 67 of its stores and relocating ten.
The affected branches included its Meadowbank Retail Park branch in Edinburgh, London’s Fenchurch Street site and stores in Castleford and Middleborough. Among the stores that relocated were those in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Thurrock.
Find out more about all the M&S store closures in the UK here.
The Works
Stationery, books and arts/crafts supplies shop The Works is closed and relocated stores last year. They included Parkway Shopping Centre in Coulby Newham, Baytree Garden Centre in Weston and the Hitchin store, whilst one moved to the Mander Shopping Centre in Wolverhampton.
Find out more about all the The Works store closures in the UK here.
Did you see that the UK’s ‘strictest pub’ is closing?
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