‘End of an era’ sob shoppers as iconic high street brand with over 1,000 branches confirms exact date it will shut store
DEVASTATED shoppers cried “end of an era” and “what a joke” after an iconic high street brand confirmed another closure in DAYS.
Loyal customers were stunned to hear their favourite branch on Gipsy Lane in Luton Retail Park would be waving goodbye forever on Saturday, June 8.
The Argos store sadly announced their imminent closure and attributed the loss to multiple factors, including restructuring within Sainsbury’s stores.
But locals were disappointed with the decision and expressed their frustrations on social media.
They will be great loss to the people of Luton
Disappointed customer
One heartfelt comment read: “I recently went there to buy my son’s birthday present.
“It was so refreshing to find helpful staff who had stock on shelves rather than the indifference of the staff in Sainsbury’s Argos.
“They will be great loss to the people of Luton.”
Another branded the move the “end of an era!”
“Typical, I like using that branch,” wrote one disgruntled customer.
Someone else agreed: “Oh that’s a shame, loved this one.”
Others conveyed their condolences to staff who will subsequently lose their jobs at the branch.
“I feel for the staff – they’re so helpful and more people losing their jobs!”, praised a devoted fan.
Another slammed: “What a joke that’s the only one I’d go into.”
The store will officially pull down their shutters for good on Saturday evening after the last day of trading.
Argos Customers in Luton will still be able to shop with nearby stores including Argos in Sainsbury’s Luton and Sainsbury’s Bramingham Park
The decision comes as part of Argos’ controversial transition into Sainsbury’s superstores.
An Argos spokesperson confirmed: “As we continue with our plan to transform Argos and offer even more convenient ways to shop with us, we are reducing the number of standalone Argos stores we operate while opening more Argos stores and collection points within Sainsbury’s.
“As part of this plan, and regular reviews of our property estate, we have made the difficult decision to close our Luton Gipsy Lane store.
“We appreciate it will be an unsettling time for everyone this affects and we have been doing everything we can to support our colleagues since the closure was announced. This has included exploring opportunities to redeploy within Sainsbury’s and Argos.”
Why are retailers closing shops?
EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre’s decline.
The Sun’s business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors.
In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping.
Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open. In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed.
The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing.
Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns.
Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead.
Boss Stuart Machin recently said that when it relocated a tired store in Chesterfield to a new big store in a retail park half a mile away, its sales in the area rose by 103 per cent.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Wilko, Debenhams Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Paperchase to name a few.
What’s increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online.
They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places.
It comes as Argos bosses closed dozens of stores over the last two years.
The high street retailer has already closed 42 UK shops, including all 34 of its branches in the Republic of Ireland last June.
In July last year, Argos announced plans to close 100 UK branches over the following 12 months.
The closures are part of the retailer’s plan to move away from the high street and focus on expanding its presence in supermarkets.
Here is the full list of standalone Argos English stores included in the list of 100, that have already closed:
- Hull
- Grantham
- Grimsby
- Norwich
- Scunthorpe
- Newport
- Cardiff Bay
- Stevenage
Argos shut 45 branches in the 12 months to March last year, while at the same time opening 25 branches inside Sainsbury’s stores.
Included in that list, the retailer shut stores in the following locations:
- Coventry
- Nottingham
- Lanarkshire
- Birkenhead
- Stoke-on-Trent
- Kettering Retail Park
- Staines-Upon-Thames
Argos also closed all of its 34 stores in the Republic of Ireland on June 24.
It follows an uncertain time for UK high streets with several popular chains including M&Co, Paperchase and Wilko closing all stores in 2023.
Several other retailers have been struggling to recover after the pandemic and cost-of-living pressures.
Energy costs have risen, while more shoppers are faced with less disposable income and tighter budgets.