It’s been a tough few years for the UK’s high streets, with many retailers shuttering their sites and more likely to follow in 2025.

Shoppers have faced numerous closures on their local high streets in recent years as many favorite channels closed branches.

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Department stores have experienced a drop in footfall and less money in checkouts due to the cost of living crisis.

People naturally cut back on their retail purchases as they found they had less money in their back pockets.

Falling expenses along with high rents and costs have already forced many chains to pursue restructuring plans and close locations.

Figures from the Center for Retail A study found that almost 10,500 UK stores will close for the last time in 2023.

The 12-month period also saw more than 119,000 jobs lost throughout the sector.

According to the center’s data, 2024 had already seen By mid-November, 8,543 stores had closed and more than 130,000 retail jobs had been lost.

And several retailers have warned that the October Budget, which saw an increase in employers’ national insurance contributions, will cause them to raise prices and possibly reduce the number of their outlets.

The start of 2025 will be no different as WHSmith, Monki and Millets are all planning closures.

Others are also likely to value their properties after the crucial Christmas period and before these budget measures are implemented.

Of course, it’s not all bad news. In some cases, branches will be replaced with larger, better quality branches. stores.

Retailers regularly open and close stores for a variety of reasons, not just because they’re struggling.

For example, they may have a store nearby that performs better or it may be because they want to choose a busier location, such as in a retail park.

Here are all the stores we know will close next year so far…

WHSmith

Stationery retailer WHSmith will close its Winton branch in Bournemouth, Dorsetin 2025.

The store will close permanently on February 15.

This comes after the retailer closed its Boscombe branch in the same town in June 2024.

WHSmith has closed 10 stores since March 2023, including locations in Manchester and Bicester.

The closures also included branches in Somerset and Sale, which closed in September.

Despite these latest closures, WHSmith has 1,400 stores in the UK and is on a path to expansion.

He had announced plans to open 110 new stores in 2024 in airports, train stations and hospitals.

More than 50 of them were in the United States and 15 in the United Kingdom. The retailer has also opened a series of Toys R Us concessions in its UK stores.

As it continues to expand, WHSmith announced plans to cut costs by up to £10 million, following a 4% drop in sales.

Monky

H&M-owned fashion chain Monki has announced plans to close its seven UK stores next year.

Those due to be closed include a site on LondonCarnaby Street and ManchesterThe Arandale Center.

H&M has announced that it will close Monki stores or merge them with another of its fashion brands, Weekday.

The Scandinavian retail giant wants to merge the two brands to create a one-stop shop that appeals to younger shoppers.

H&M has not yet confirmed exactly when the stores will close permanently.

The artist

Toy giant The Entertainer has confirmed plans to close its point of sale at the Cameron Toll shopping center in Edinecity January 4, 2025.

This will mark the end of a decade for the store, which opened in 2014.

No reason was given for the closure, but boss Andrew Murphy said the October one Budget would have an impact on the company’s finances.

According to him, the government’s decision to increase employers’ social security contributions forced the group to abandon its plan to open two new stores.

Cooperative

Central Cooperative sells to 19 grocery stores in various locations across central England.

Three of the food stores will reopen their doors B&M branches, while the remaining 16 are sold to Samy Limited.

Independent convenience chain Samy currently operates 32 Budgens, Spar, Londis and Premier stores across the UK.

Central Co-op said the 19 branches had been “financially unsustainable for some time”.

All 19 stores will be closed by the end of May 2025.

Despite the closures, Central Co-op opened five new food stores in 2024 and renovated 35 others.

Millets

Millets prepares to close six stores and launched huge closing sales in branches.

All affected stores are expected to close their doors in early 2025.

Four of the sites will be reopened and rebranded as Go Outdoors sites, a sister brand of Millets.

These include the sites of Lowestoft, Douglas, York and Grimsby.

Another Millets site in Burgess Hill, West Sussex, will not be rebranded and is expected to close permanently in January.

Millets owner JD Outdoors appears to be prioritizing the expansion of its sister brand Go Outdoors.

There are now 96 Go Outdoors locations across the county.

Base of attachment

Four Homebase stores in Derry/Londonderry, Inverurie, Omagh and Fife are set to close in the new year.

The retailer closed six sites in December, with all 10 acquired by Sainsbury’s for conversion into supermarkets.

A further 70 Homebase stores were saved after being bought by the owner of The Range when the retailer fell into administration.

Homebase was owned by Hilco Capital, which had closed 93 stores since its purchase in 2018.

Hilco bought the hardware chain for £1 from Australian company Wesfarmers, which paid £340 million for the brand.

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