High street pharmacy chain to shut another branch after string of closures this spring – is your local disappearing?
A HIGH street pharmacy chain is to shut another branch following a string of closures this spring.
Retailers have been feeling the pinch since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on their spending due to soaring inflation.
Huge high street names and independent retailers alike have been forced to close stores as a result – including pharmacy chain Boots.
The retailer closed a string of stores this Spring, and now another branch is set to shut its doors for good.
Boots in King William Street, London, is to close its doors on June 2.
A sign posted in the store tells customers that their nearest branch will be located in Fenchurch Street.
The Sun has contacted Boots for comment and asked if it plans to close any more stores in the coming months.
In February, Boots confirmed that it was closing three stores this year, including:
- Salford Shopping Centre, Greater Manchester
- Church Street, Malvern
- The Port Arcades Shopping Centre, Ellesmere
Boots said in all cases there is an alternative store less than three miles away.
The chain currently has more than 2,200 stores across the UK.
Boots closed more than 200 stores over an 18-month period starting in 2019.
This saw roughly 8% of Boots’ high street branches close.
Many of the stores shut because they were loss-making and two-thirds of them were within walking distance of each other.
In 2020, Boots announced 48 opticians were closing with the loss of 4,000 jobs.
More recently, a number of big retailers have disappeared from the high street.
Stationary shop Paperchase fell into administration in February and shut all of its stores two months later.
Supermarket giant Tesco stepped up to buy the rights to the brand, but not its shops.
M&Co also bought the shutters down on all of its 170 shops on April 22.
Plus, home retailer Argos announced it will close all of its stores in the Republic of Ireland this year.
The Sun has put together a guide to all of the store closures taking place in May.
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