A BIG discount store with more than 850 branches is set to close its doors for good.
Shoppers have sobbed at yet another loss for our high streets as Poundland is to close one of its stores within hours.
The cheap and cheerful retailer took over the former Wilko site in Altrincham, Greater Manchester, last October.
Sadly, after eight months, Pounland will close its George Street location in Stamford Quarter on Monday.
The locals screamed at the last blow.
One person wrote on Facebook: “Such a shame,” while another wrote: “Rent needs to come down to attract and retain business.”
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A third said, “How sad.”
And a shocked fourth commented: “Blime, it only opened recently.”
In May, signs appeared: “Sorry. We are closing June 17th. Visit our website for more nearby stores.”
A spokesman for Poundland said the firm had been unable to agree a new lease with the landlord.
He said: “Unfortunately we have not been able to agree terms of the lease that would allow us to keep the business trading.
“Currently, the store is scheduled to close on June 17.
“Whenever we have to close a store, it goes without saying that we do everything we can to find alternative roles for colleagues.”
When recruiting new employees for the store, the seller gave preference to Wilko employees.
It is not the first former Wilko store Poundland has closed.
The Jarrow branch was one of the first ex-Wilko stores to reopen, but closed for good on 20 April.
The North East store opened at the end of September last year just 12 days after taking over the premises from Wilko.
Poundland bought 71 ex-Wilko stores when the retailer went into administration last year.
The discounter quickly turned locations and opened many own-brand stores before Christmas.
Several stores have since closed, including locations in Ellesmere Port, Glashiels and the Sailmakers Shopping Center in Ipswich.
In total, Poundland has closed nine former Wilko branches just months after bringing them back to life.
What else is happening on the high street
Many retailers have recently had to make changes in an effort to survive the cost of living crisis.
Over the past 12 months we have seen several major losses, including popular discounter Wilko and stationary brand Paperchase.
This year health and beauty chain The Body Shop went into administration and announced the closure of many of its 200 stores.
Almost 500 staff are set to lose their jobs after 75 stores were earmarked for closure.
In addition, clothing retailer Ted Baker also went into administration in March 2024, with 15 stores closed by 19 April.
Other retailers such as Iceland, Boots and Matalan are slimming down the number of stores they have in their portfolio.
Boots is closing a total of nine sites this spring alone as part of its wider plans to shed 300 jobs.
These closures will reduce the retailer’s total number of stores from 2,200 to 1,900.
This has upset many local residents in the affected towns, however the health and beauty chain said where the stores are closing there is an alternative store less than three miles away.
If you’re worried about your favorite store disappearing from the high street, we’ve got a full list of shops and supermarkets set to close in May – check your local one.
Why do merchants close shop?
EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many of Britain’s high streets and are often a symbol of city center decay.
The Sun’s business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are closing their doors.
In many cases, retailers are closing stores because they are no longer the money makers they once were due to the rise of online shopping.
Falling store sales and rising employee costs have made it even more expensive for stores to stay open. In some cases, retailers close shop and reopen a new store at the other end of the high street to reflect how the city has changed.
The problem is that when a big store closes, footsteps fall across the local high street, putting other stores at risk of closing.
Retail parks are becoming increasingly popular with shoppers looking for easy and free parking at a time when local authorities have increased parking charges in cities.
Many retailers, including Next and Marks & Spencer, are closing high street stores and instead taking larger stores to more efficient retail parks.
Boss Stuart Machin recently said that when he moved a tired store in Chesterfield to a large new store in a retail park half a mile away, his sales in the area increased by 103 per cent.
In some cases, stores were closed when the retailer went bust, such as Wilko, Debenhams Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Paperchase to name a few.
Increasingly, when a chain goes out of business, a rival retailer or private equity firm acquires the intellectual property rights to own the brand and sell it online.
They may continue to open multiple stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely that many stores or in the same locations.