‘Another loss’ cry shoppers as discounter with 322 stores confirms date ‘awesome’ branch will close after 20 years
A MAJOR discounter is closing another store leaving bargain hunters frustrated.
Poundstretcher will shut its shop at Meadowbank Shopping Park in Edinburgh next month.
The store, which has been located at the site for over 20 years, will close for good on Friday, May 17.
Signs have been placed outside the store highlighting 50% off everything in store.
Gary McNamee, area manager for Poundstretcher, told Edinburgh Live: “Poundstretcher Meadowbank has confirmed that it will close on May 17, after 20 years of trade.
“Everything in the store is now 50% off.”
Commenting on the news on Facebook, one shopper said: “Another loss for the city.”
Another said: “Closes in May, better get those bargains in while you can.”
“I’m not surprised, it was always empty,” said a third shopper.
Three units, including the Poundstretcher, within Meadowbank are set to be transformed into a huge new 24-hour gym.
Poundstretcher is also permanently closing its branch in Peterlee, County Durham, next month.
A member of staff confirmed the branch is shutting on May 15.
It comes just weeks after another Poundstretcher store shut in Chesterfield in a blow for locals.
The Derbyshire store pulled down its shutters for the final time on March 16, according to local news reports.
The discount chain also closed 13 branches across the UK in 2023.
Sites in Grantham, England, Kilmarnock, Scotland and Ammanford, Wales, were all shut down.
However, the retailer, which has around 450 branches has also announced major expansion plans in recent years.
In February 2023, the retailer said it wanted to open 50 more stores before the end of the year.
The chain said it expected the store openings to generate 2,000 jobs over the next five years.
The discount chain opened 30 locations in 2022 as well.
It comes after the chain, owned by businessman Aziz Tayub for the past 18 years, was snapped up earlier this month.
Investment group Fortress bought the retailer for a yet-to-be-revealed sum.
The deal will not have any impact on customers, staff or stores.
Retailers closing stores in 2024
RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.
High energy costs and a move to shopping online are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.
Here’s a list of all the big-name brands closing stores this year:
- Argos – The brand announced plans to close 100 standalone UK branches last year as it looks to move away from the high street and focus on expanding its presence in supermarkets.
- B&Q – The chain has over 300 shops across the UK, so chances are you have one near you, but some stores have closed in recent months.
- Boots – The health and beauty chain announced that it would be closing 300 stores last July. Closures are ongoing and this will see the retailer’s estate reduced from 2,200 to 1,900 shops.
- Clintons – Clintons mulled plans to close 38 shops in a bid to avoid insolvency late last year. We’ve listed the stores affected.
- Costa Coffee – The caffeine giant has around 2,000 sites nationwide, so chances are you’ll have one near you. The chain has shut the doors to dozens of its sites recently. We’ve revealed which stores are due to close this year.
- Iceland – The supermarket has more than 900 stores but closed nearly two dozen sites in 2023, and more selected shops are due to shut.
- Lidl – The supermarket, which has 950 stores, is changing up shop locations, which has meant that some stores have to close. But the retailer is also looking to open 12 new supermarkets.
- M&S – M&S, which runs 405 stores across the country, has been closing a string of branches across the country in a blow for shoppers. It’s not all bad news, though, because the chain also has big plans to open dozens of new shops as well.
- Trespass – The firm announced in July last year that it was closing six branches, but more are on the way.
- WHSmith – The retail giant, which runs over 1,100 stores, has shuttered eight stores since March 2023, but more are coming.
Poundstretcher is one of the UK’s biggest discounters, rivalling high street giants Poundland and B&M.
It specialises in selling cheap goods like toiletries, homeware, gardening and food and drink items.
The firm is based in Leicester and employs around 4,000 staff.
OTHER HIGH STREET NEWS
Several major retailers are also expanding their presence on UK high streets.
Aldi has announced that it will open 35 new UK stores.
The openings form part of Aldi‘s long-term target of 1,500 stores in the UK.
The supermarket is set to invest £550million in expanding its UK footprint this year alone.
Aldi said that each new store opening will create around 40 new jobs on average.
Asda has been opening hundreds of convenience stores in recent months as it looks to rival major players Tesco and Sainsbury’s.
B&M plans to open “not less than” 45 brand new stores across the UK in each of the next two consecutive years.
The parent company of Bonmarché, Edinburgh Woollen Mill (EWM) and Peacocks, Purepay Retail Limited, has said it wants to open 100 new high street stores over the next 18 months.
It has yet to give the exact locations where it will open the 100 stores or when they will open.
One of the UK’s favourite bakery chain, Greggs, has exclusively revealed to The Sun plans to open more outlet branches by the end of 2025.
Home Bargains, which was running just under 600 branches as of last June, has said it wants to “eventually have between 800 and 1,000 retail outlets open”.
The major discounter has stopped short of saying when it wants to reach the 1,000 store target however.
Primark is also opening new branches and investing and renovating more than a dozen of its existing shops.
Screwfix is set to open 40 new stores nationwide as its owner, Kingfisher, seeks to expand the DIY brand’s national presence.
The brand opened two new stores in March, and a further three new shops will open this month.
Tesco has revealed plans to open 70 more stores across the UK over the next year as part of major expansion plans.
WHSmith has turned its focus to the travel side of its business, with plans to open new sites in airports, railway stations and hospitals.
Lidl is also looking to open 12 new stores across the UK as it bids to raise £91million in funding from investors.