High street shops that have disappeared from the UK

The ‘death of the high street’ is a phrase that has become all too familiar in Britain. Cost-of-living pressures, the pandemic and business rents have all played a part in the demise of town and city centres. Arguably, though, it is the lack of in-store shopping that has been the real killer.

A behemoth shift in consumer behaviour in the last 20 years driven by advancements in tech is the crux of the issue. The fact is, people now prefer to shop from the comfort of their own home. In the UK, more than 80% of the population now makes online purchases, according to data platform Statista. That leaves just a minority of non-digital buyers.

SIMILAR ARTICLES TO THIS

POWERED BY

Levi Strauss reports growth in UK market despite challenges from bargain hunters

Gear4music hits all the right notes with plans to drive sales to £150m by 2025

John Lewis revives historic price promise with AI technology to match competitors

Primark owner Associated British Foods braves grey and damp summer with sales surge

UK electric vehicle sales rise amid heavy discounting and new models, despite overall market struggles

The major impact McDonald’s UK has on the South West economy

Amazon confirms big pay rise for thousands of workers

Hilton Foods reports 23% profit rise, plans further expansion amid strong seafood and meat sales

Ryanair and Wizz Air smash passenger records as demand soars in ‘busiest summer’

Revolution Bars resumes trading on AIM with new shares after major restructuring

Kopparberg UK slashes losses in 2023, turnover dips amid challenging market conditions

McDonald’s hails £767m contribution to North West economy as it marks 50 years in the UK

Pop-up funding, banking hubs and business rate reform – what local high streets need to survive and thrive

Specsavers holds steady with £15m payout to owners amid global expansion

Hobbycraft acquired by Modella Capital amid challenging economic conditions

Retail footfall dynamics shift as UK shoppers favour retail parks over high streets in August

Arla Foods predicts milk price hike as global shortages loom, impacting Cravendale and other brands

Boyes to turn former Pindar base in Scarborough into distribution centre

Applied Nutrition eyes £500m float on London Stock Exchange this year

Flowtech’s strategic acquisition of Thorite for £350k set to boost UK expansion and profitability

Levi Strauss reports growth in UK market despite challenges from bargain hunters

Gear4music hits all the right notes with plans to drive sales to £150m by 2025

John Lewis revives historic price promise with AI technology to match competitors

Primark owner Associated British Foods braves grey and damp summer with sales surge

UK electric vehicle sales rise amid heavy discounting and new models, despite overall market struggles

The major impact McDonald’s UK has on the South West economy

Amazon confirms big pay rise for thousands of workers

Hilton Foods reports 23% profit rise, plans further expansion amid strong seafood and meat sales

Ryanair and Wizz Air smash passenger records as demand soars in ‘busiest summer’

Revolution Bars resumes trading on AIM with new shares after major restructuring

Kopparberg UK slashes losses in 2023, turnover dips amid challenging market conditions

McDonald’s hails £767m contribution to North West economy as it marks 50 years in the UK

Pop-up funding, banking hubs and business rate reform – what local high streets need to survive and thrive

Specsavers holds steady with £15m payout to owners amid global expansion

Hobbycraft acquired by Modella Capital amid challenging economic conditions

Retail footfall dynamics shift as UK shoppers favour retail parks over high streets in August

Arla Foods predicts milk price hike as global shortages loom, impacting Cravendale and other brands

Boyes to turn former Pindar base in Scarborough into distribution centre

Applied Nutrition eyes £500m float on London Stock Exchange this year

Flowtech’s strategic acquisition of Thorite for £350k set to boost UK expansion and profitability

Levi Strauss reports growth in UK market despite challenges from bargain hunters

Gear4music hits all the right notes with plans to drive sales to £150m by 2025

John Lewis revives historic price promise with AI technology to match competitors

Primark owner Associated British Foods braves grey and damp summer with sales surge

UK electric vehicle sales rise amid heavy discounting and new models, despite overall market struggles

The major impact McDonald’s UK has on the South West economy

Amazon confirms big pay rise for thousands of workers

Perhaps not surprisingly, the weather is also culpable. When the sun shines (a somewhat unpredictable measure in the UK), sales go up. Research by the British Retail Consortium found that a few days of sunshine in August helped boost sales up 2.2% by value and 1.4% by volume.

Fashion chain Ted Baker is the latest brand to become a victim of the high street. It closed all its remaining 31 stores in the UK and Republic of Ireland this week. The announcement came just a few short months after its owner – No Ordinary Designer Label (NODL) – fell into administration. The chain is now among a long line of once much-loved British brands to have disappeared. And, sadly, it won’t be the last.

It raises the question though – ‘what will happen to the UK’s high streets in the future?’ According to one expert, there is likely to be a shift away from retail to leisure, entertainment and, even, housing.

“The high street is not dead, but it may be being reborn,” said Jon Munnery, insolvency and company restructuring expert at UK Liquidators, part of the Begbies Traynor Group. “Any reinvigoration of the high street is going to take time and will require a cultural shift in how we view and use our town and city centre spaces.

“It is unlikely 2024 will see the widespread changes needed to bring our high streets back to their former glory, but in an ever-changing environment the high street is unlikely to stay still.”

Here, we take a look seven brands that have disappeared from the high street for good…

Woolworths

A Woolworths store (Image: Stoke Sentinel)

Woolworths (or Woolies as it was often known) was originally part of US brand the American FW Woolworth Company. The first British store opened in Liverpool in 1909. The brand was sold in the 1980s and had more than 800 shops at its peak.

Woolworths is often remembered for its pick ‘n’ mix sweets, but also sold clothing (it had its own Ladybird range) as well as toys, stationary and value goods.

In 2008, Woolworths Group was suspended from trading shares on the London Stock Exchange and its UK subsidiaries entered administration that year. The last branch was on Glasgow’s Argyle Street. It shut for good in January 2009.

Blockbuster

A Blockbuster store

The video rental chain was founded in 1985 by David Cook. The business later expanded its model to include video games and DVDs. By 2004, Blockbuster employed more than 84,000 people globally and had nearly 10,000 stores.

However, amid the rise of competition from companies such as Netflix, which started out as mail-order firms, the business failed to thrive. Blockbuster went bust in 2010 and shut its last stores in 2014.

Somerfield

Somerfield (Image: ct)

The origins of the supermarket can be traced back to 1875 when JH Mills opened a grocery store in Bristol. In the 1950s the chain rebranded as Gateway, with the name Somerfield appearing in 1990. The company floated on the stock market in 1996 and by 1998 had merged with Kwik Save.

Some 10 years later, however, it was running up significant losses and the owners of the nearly 900-store chain sold the business to the Co-op. As a result, the name Somerfield disappeared from the high street.

C&A

C&A store, Metrocentre, Gateshead, 1992 (Image: NEWCASTLE CHRONICLE)

The fashion chain was founded in the Netherlands in 1841 by brothers Clemens and August Brenninkmeijer. In the 1990s, the business had 109 stores in the UK, selling swimwear, sleepwear and underwear. The brand pulled out of the UK in 2000 with the loss of nearly 5,000 jobs.