Who’s next as Greenwoods Menswear joins the high street casualties?

The Homebrew Forum

Help Support The Homebrew Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Sadly no place for nostalgia about these businesses. If you can't compete and/or change with the times you fail or are bought and asset stripped. And there's nothing is new about this. Some on here will remember Burtons, John Collier ( the window to watch) and even the 50 Shilling Tailor. All gone, for better or worse.

Burtons still exist, they just share stores now with the other used to be Arcadia group stores (Evans, Dorothy Perkins etc). I had a Christmas job with them back in my student days, was a nice place to work.
 
I saw something on BBC news over Xmas and the bloke talking said it was 'business rates' that was doing it. I have no idea what these are btw, never having run a shop or investigated anything about it
Hi!
Business rates - what a crock of shi*!
Rateable value is calculated by the floor area of your establishment, so a large working men's club, like Bentley West End club, where I am on t'committee, with several rooms, and extensive cellarage (mainly empty rooms) gets whacked with a big rates bill even though our membership is falling and our turnover diminishing year on year.
 
I saw something on BBC news over Xmas and the bloke talking said it was 'business rates' that was doing it. I have no idea what these are btw, never having run a shop or investigated anything about it

I imagine the tax you pay for business use is ridiculously high compared to the same size property being a house etc and it's just one of the reasons shops are disapearing from out highstreets.
 
I imagine the tax you pay for business use is ridiculously high compared to the same size property being a house etc and it's just one of the reasons shops are disapearing from out highstreets.

I the the bloke was saying online retailer use a lot less floor space (warehouses piled to the rafters) compared to shops who get hammered by all the floor space needed/business rates on multiple shops if you're a chain
 
Business rates are as mentioned calculated by floor space with retail space being most expensive the office then storage with toilets free, the rate goes up if its air conditioned. Different councils could work it differently and will have different rates. Businesses that have only 1 premises that comes under a certain value (like mine) can get 100% discount. As a rough idea near me a shop will cost between 1/3rd and 2/3rds of the rent so it pretty high and pubs are towards the higher end of this also unlike residential you don't get the bins emptied for it.
 
On the subject of town centre shops closing (high street casualties)

I don't go into town to shop i hate paying to park so that i can spend my money in my local shops (as the local shop keepers keep saying we should), when you finally get into the shops you find the likes of the Tesco satellite and the Co-Op sell the same stuff at the same inflated price because we either pay it or travel 8 miles to to the next town where they have several big supermarkets and choosing which one you shop in will make a big difference to your monthly shopping bill.

We also have two different petrol station opposite each other on the way into town and the price is always the same so yet again we are getting ripped off.

[Rant Over]

.
 
Last edited:
Another store disappearing from our high-street. (actually its in the next town Barrow)




More than 1,000 jobs at Marks & Spencer are at risk as the retailer announced its latest round of store closures as part of a drastic transformation plan.

The retailer released a list of 17 stores proposed for closure on Tuesday, in a move which will affect 1,045 employees.

The 17 stores set to close are: Ashford, Barrow, Bedford, Boston, Buxton, Cwmbran, Deal, Felixstowe, Huddersfield, Hull, Junction One Antrim Outlet, Luton Arndale, Newark, Northwich, Rotherham, Sutton Coldfield and Weston Super Mare.

As part of an accelerated store closure programme, M&S is on track to close over 100 stores.

Of these, 30 have already closed and 25 have been announced including Tuesday’s list.

To date, 1,891 workers have been impacted by the closures but the company said 1,591 of them – over 80% – had been been redeployed to new roles.

https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/new...ces-store-closures-putting-1000-jobs-at-risk/





 
Plus the days of wearing a shirt. Tie and trousers have gone. My dearly departed grandfather wore a shirt and tie to collect his newspaper. He was buried in a suit.
We.ll be collecting our papers in jeans and t shirt and be burnt or buried in the same.
Maybe the Levis shop suffering same fate in 50 years.
Dave
 
M&S have been on the ropes for years; it's basically their food offering that keeps them alive. Their clothing range just doesn't have a market any more. Ironically, I guess that their food only halls stand a better chance of surviving the online onslaught than many other shops.
 
I think Debenhams will be next they have already said the one in Barrow may go i guess its just a matter of time, as it says below HMW, Toys R Us, Poundworld and Maplin have already gone it makes you wonder who will be next.



A small but popular shop in town is closing due to falling sales and is moving online at this rate all we will have is coffee shops, hairdressers, building societies and butchers/pie shops, we only have one bank now (used to have 3) who would want to open a shop these days.


ls.jpg



Geek Goods, based on New Market Street, has faced a difficult 12 months in what has been a tough year for retailers.

In 2018 HMW, Toys R Us, Poundworld and Maplin all went into administration.

Karen Wilkinson, owner of Geek Goods said the retail industry has had a turbulent year.

She said: "I would say last year was a very difficult trading environment for retail.

"We always do well at Christmas because people are looking for gifts and I was hoping the festive season would give us a boost to keep us going.

"But we did not get what he needed to continue and we have to close.

"Retail in general in this country has struggled a lot this past year."

Geek Goods will close next month but Miss Wilkinson will move her business online.

https://www.nwemail.co.uk/news/1735...tore-next-month-and-move-the-business-online/
 
I wouldn't be surprised if Debenhams was next.
I always wonder how WH Smith stays open. I guess the deal with the post office has helped over the last few years
 
I wouldn't be surprised if Debenhams was next.
I always wonder how WH Smith stays open. I guess the deal with the post office has helped over the last few years

Pah - Smiths stopped selling bacca donkey's years ago... haven't set foot in one of their dugouts since. Bet they stopped flogging porn mags too, 'on principle'. Ye well, they deserve to fall - you can only make so much profit from flogging biros and bubble wrap to passing commuters.
 
Last edited:
I bet this helps staff of their other stores sleep soundly tonight!
However, it insisted it was not planning any other closures at the moment.




John Lewis is to close its first store since 2006.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-46970877

The retailer said the 35,000 sq ft Knight & Lee outlet in Southsea in Hampshire was its smallest full-range department store and could not easily be modernised.

John Lewis has previously acknowledged the "challenges" facing the High Street in the current retail climate.

However, it insisted it was not planning any other closures at the moment.

The store, which will close in July, is one of only two John Lewis shops in the UK to retain its original name.

The retailer said the size and condition of the building "restricts the customer offer".


_105312511_john_lewis_knight_lee_pa.jpg
 
M&S have been on the ropes for years; it's basically their food offering that keeps them alive. Their clothing range just doesn't have a market any more. Ironically, I guess that their food only halls stand a better chance of surviving the online onslaught than many other shops.

Their clothing range certainly has a market with me. Their pants and socks are ace!
 
Yes M I agree...boxers and socks are very good...you would, however,look like the older gentleman in their current range...
 

Latest posts

Back
Top