MARCH has proved to be another difficult month for UK high streets with a total of 62 stores set to close for good.
Both big names brands and smaller independent stores are continuing to be bruised by higher rents and shoppers having less money in their pockets.
Another big factor is upcoming hikes to employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) and national minimum wage which add to retailers costs.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said during her autumn statement last year that she would raise employers’ National Insurance contributions (NICs) from 13.8% to 15%.
She also announced a reduction to the threshold at which businesses start paying NI contributions from £9,100 to £5,000.
Below we share all the stores closing before the end of March.
SELECT FASHION – 35 STORES
The affordable clothing brand will complete its plan to shutter up to 35 stores this month.
Select Fashion has been quietly slashing its store estate since January, with a number of the nearly-three dozen stores marked for closure having already shut.
That includes sites in Southampton, Hatfield, Kidderminster, Crewe, Wolverhampton and Coalville.
It comes after documents, shared with The Sun, detailed how a total of 35 stores would shutter across February and March.
After this cull, it is understood that just 48 Select stores will remain open for trade.
Before its administration in 2019, the chain which has been on the high street for nearly four decades, had a total of 169 stores.
SUPERDRY – TWO STORES
The British brand, famous for its jackets, has shut a total of two stores so far this month.
Its branch at the Eastgate Shopping Centre in Basildon, Essex, closed on March 2, while its its branch in Bradford Broadway shopping centre on March 15.
It comes just one month after the British business closed a branch at the Union Square Shopping Centre in Aberdeen.
Superdry made a string of closures in 2024 following tough trading conditions.
The retailer, introduced to the masses by David Beckham, closed 12 stores over the first half of last year.
The fashion brand said last January it was looking at various “cost-saving options” after reports it was considering major restructuring.
YOURS CLOTHING – ONE STORE
Yours Clothing shut its branch in the Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham on March 15.
The brand, which sells clothing for plus sized women, has been located in the mall since 2014.
It is owned by AK Retail, which acquired fashion brand Evans and ailing retailer M&Co.
To shift stock before it closed it launched a 20% off sale for shoppers.
HOMEBASE – 10 STORES
Homebase closed 33 stores back in February following its administration late last year.
The store was partially rescued by billionaire Chris Dawson, owner of CDS Superstores, the parent company of The Range and Wilko.
CDS wanted to rescue 70 stores but this left 74 stores at risk of closure.
Teneo, the administrators for Homebase, then put the remaining stores up for sale.
To date, CDS has only confirmed the names of 26 stores it has rescued, leaving the exact number of saved locations unclear.
B&Q has agreed to buy eight of the chain’s branches that were put up for sale and Wickes, which has acquired five stores.
However, three of the branches which could be included in the list of up to 70 rescued by CDS are closing this month.
Homebase stores in St Albans, Stockport and Ewell are all shutting but could reopen under a different retailer’s name.
Meanwhile, seven not up for sale will close for good. All 10 of the branches don’t have confirmed closure dates yet.
This is the full list of branches shuttering by the end of the month:
- St Albans, Hatfield
- Bredbury, Stockport
- Ewell
- Heath Retail Park, Honiton
- Catford, London
- Milton Keynes
- Orpington
- Hamilton, Scotland
- Omagh, Northern Ireland
- Londonderry, Northern Ireland
M&S – ONE STORE
The posh retailer will close one of its branches in Leeds in a blow to shoppers.
It’s Foodhall store in Wellington Street, in the city centre is set to close on March 22.
Shoppers only need to walk 10 minutes to find the nearest branch, but it has not stopped shoppers from sharing their heartbreak on social media.
This includes one who said they were including one who said they were “devvoed” (devastated).
BEAVERBROOKS – THREE STORES
The jewellery brand will close three stores in March, as part of plans to shutter a handful of sites over the next two months.
It comes after The Sun previously revealed Beaverbrooks’ planned to close seven branches deemed “no longer commercially viable”.
It’s East Kilbride and Dundee branch both closed on March 16.
The Birmingham Fort store will shut its doors on March 23, alongside the High Wycombe branch, which is scheduled to close on the same day.
CO-OP – ONE STORE
The supermarket closed its branch in Honiton, East Devon, earlier this month.
The branch closed for good on March 15, in a blow to locals.
Shoppers and locals were left dismayed at the closure, with almost 200 writing thank you cards to staff at the branch.
Others have posted on Facebook sharing their disappointment the store will permanently shut.
One said: “We have to use the shops in Honiton. Use them or lose them.”
BLACK DIAMOND LIFESTYLE STORE
This independent store closed for the last time on March 13.
The store located in Burbage sold independent clothing and homeware goods.
A closing down sale was launched and it continues to be ongoing on its online website.
NEWPORT SCOPE CHARITY SHOP
This charity shop in Newport is gearing up to close its store on March 22.
In a post on Facebook, the store manager for the branch said: “For more than 30 years this shop has been more than just a place to find great bargains.
“It has been a hub of generosity, community, and support for scope. We are incredibly grateful for the donations, the volunteers who gave their time, and every customer who stepped through our doors.”
It comes after the disability charity said it was considering shuttering 77 of its 138 shops.
Last month the charity’s bosses said the difficult decision is being considered in light of declining footfall on high streets and spiralling costs.
Under the proposal the first 41 shops could close by March 31.
A further 31 shops would close between April 1 and March 31, 2026.
B&M – ONE STORE
The beloved bargain store will close one of its store in Wilsden Junction, London at the end of March.
The Home Store with Garden Centre in Willesden will permanently close on March 29.
A closure notice has been put up in the store window thanking shoppers for their custom over the years.
Customers have been left devastated after finding out the branch will close its doors for good in just weeks.
NEW LOOK – TWO STORES
New Look is ramping up a store closure programme ahead of April’s National Insurance hike.
Approximately a quarter of the retailer’s 364 stores are at risk when their leases expire.
This equates to about 91 stores, with a significant impact on its 8,000-strong workforce.
As part of this process, New Look pulled the shutters down for good at their St Austell and Gateshead, Tyne and Wear location earlier this month.
WH SMITH – ONE STORE
WHSmith closed a store in Accrington, Lancashire on March 15.
The popular store is set to shut due to its lease expiring.
WHSmith has already shut stores in Bolton, Bournemouth and Boscombe in recent weeks.
This came as the 232 year-old British business put its entire high street estate up for sale, with The Sun naming HMV owner Doug Putman among the potential buyers.
WHSmith is focusing on the travel side of its business where sales are growing, including airports and train stations.
In an update this year to investors, the retailer said it’s on track to open 15 stores this year, with a further 15 to follow “each year over the medium term”.
The retailer said it would be moving away from its high-street stores and has no plans to open any more.
TRESSPASS -ONE STORE
Trespass will close its store at Highcross shopping centre, Leicester, for good on March 31.
It is not known why the shop is shutting.
The store has launched a closing-down sale with items on offer for up to 60% off.
The news comes just weeks after Trespass announced its branch at the Hillstree Shopping Centre, Middlesbrough, would shut.
THE KITCHEN RANGE
The Kitchen Range in Llandudno, Wales announced it would officially close on Saturday, March 8- sparking despair amongst locals.
Owner Robin Whitehead said the decision came down to him finally retiring after 42 years operating in the town.
Whitehead, who opened the store in 1983, used to run several businesses in the area.
In January he announced a closing down sale — with there now being only “so little left”.
MONKI – ONE STORE
Clothes retailer Monki also closed down its store in Birmingham this month.
The brand is known for its colourful designs and is a popular place for trend-conscious Gen Z shoppers looking to buy low-rise and baggy jeans.
But the store is set to vanish as H&M continues with plans to integrate the brand with another one of its fashion lines, Weekday.
As part of the process, Monki branches will either be closed or converted into Weekday multi-brand stores.
Its branches across Manchester and Newcastle closed in January.
The remaining stores in London, Bristol, and Sheffield will also close this year or be transformed.
The Monki brand will remain and will be sold on weekday.com and in Weekday multi-brand stores this year.
RETAIL PAIN IN 2025
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
Research by the British Chambers of Commerce shows that more than half of companies plan to raise prices by early April.
A survey of more than 4,800 firms found that 55% expect prices to increase in the next three months, up from 39% in a similar poll conducted in the latter half of 2024.
Three-quarters of companies cited the cost of employing people as their primary financial pressure.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: “The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025.”
Professor Bamfield has also warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector.
“By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer’s household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020.”
