Shoppers grumble when a sports store with 500 branches closes permanently
A POPULAR sports store with 500 branches is about to permanently close one of its branches.
Sports Direct is closing its store on Octagon Parade in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.
A disappointed local woman said on Facebook she was “deeply concerned” about what the closure would do to the town.
The message read: “Soon there will be no more stores. Sports Direct is closing, so now Wycombe has hardly any sportswear shops, no computer games shops and no toy shops.
“I have serious concerns about what is being done to attract people to spend money in Wycombe.”
Others commented on the post to share their thoughts.
I’m seriously done with this dead city
Social media user
One person said: “I mainly blame online shopping, it has destroyed the high street and the councils are not helping with their high rents either.”
Another added: “I’m seriously done with this dead city.”
While a third commented: “Until people stop buying online, no big stores will survive.”
However, all is not lost for shoppers as the store is moving to another building in the city.
The new Sports Direct store will be located in the former Zara unit in the Eden Shopping Centre.
A spokesperson for Frasers Group, which owns Sports Direct, told The Sun: “We are delighted to be opening a new, high-quality shopping destination at the Eden Shopping Center in High Wycombe.”
“The Sports Direct store will give High Wycombe customers access to the world’s best sports and lifestyle brands, as well as offering other brands from the Frasers Group ecosystem, including USC and GAME.”
The Frasers Group is owned by billionaire businessman Mike Ashley, who stepped in to save House of Fraser from collapse in 2018.
The group operates a number of high street and online brands.
Which chains does the Frasers Group own?
MIKE Ashley’s Frasers Group owns dozens of high street and online brands, here’s the full list.
- House of Fraser
- Sports Direct
- Washcloths
- Evans cycles
- Everlast gyms
- Eternally
- Game
- Frasers
- I saw it first
- Gieves and Hawkes
- Jack Williams
- Slazenger
- Studio
- Sofa.com
- USA Pro
- USC
In recent months, the group has closed branches across its entire retail portfolio.
Game, House of Fraser and Flannels branches have been closed over the past twelve months.
We recently revealed that Game is closing its store in the Union Square Shopping Center in Torquay, Devon.
A Sports Direct branch in Stroud, Gloucestershire, will also pull down the shutters for good at the end of March.
Meanwhile, designer clothing chain Choice has downed the shutters of one of its stores in Bromley.
The group also took the luxury brand Matchesfashion into administration earlier this month.
What about new store openings for the group?
It’s not all bad news for Frasers Group, as it has also opened several locations in the UK.
The group has opened new concept stores featuring various Frasers brands such as Sports Direct, Flannels and beauty halls, as well as products from USC, Jack Willks and GAME.
In September it cut the ribbon on the latest of its new department stores with popular brands such as Sports Direct and Game in Norwich.
There are plans to open two more concept stores in Blackpool and Sheffield.
The group also announced it will take over the former John Lewis site in the Queensgate Shopping Centre, Peterborough.
A new sportswear store is also opening at The Precinct in Coventry.
What else is happening on the shopping street?
Retailers have been feeling the pressure since the pandemic and many are struggling to stay afloat.
High energy costs and rents mean that many large companies are starting to slim down the number of high street stores they operate.
We’ve seen several big losses in the last twelve months, including popular discounter Wilko and stationary brand Paperchase.
More recently, health and beauty chain The Body Shop has gone bankrupt and announced the closure of many of its 200 stores.
Other retailers such as Iceland, Boots and Matalan have reduced the number of stores on the high street.
This month, Boots announced it will close a total of nine locations, as part of its wider plans to lose 300 locations.
These closures will reduce the retailer’s total number of stores from 2,200 to 1,900.
Marks and Spencer is another retailer that has made changes to its store portfolio.
In 2022, M&S announced it would close 67 “lower productivity” stores as part of the 110 stores it had already earmarked for closure.
It wasn’t all bad news for M&S shoppers, though, with some stores closing, others opening in new locations.
We have the full list of chains opening stores in 2024. See if one is coming to a shopping street near you.
Why are retailers closing their stores?
RETAILERS have been feeling the pressure since the pandemic, as shoppers cut back on spending due to the rising cost of living.
High energy costs and the move to online shopping after the pandemic are also taking their toll, with many high street stores struggling to continue.
The high street has seen a slew of closures in the past year, with more to come.
The number of jobs lost in UK retail fell last year, but 120,000 people still lost their jobs, figures show.
Figures from the Center for Retail Research show that 10,494 stores will have closed for the last time in 2023 and 119,405 jobs will have been lost in the sector.
It was fewer stores than had been lost in recent years, and a decrease from the 151,641 jobs lost in 2022.
The centre’s director, Professor Joshua Bamfield, said the improvement is “less bad” than good.
While some big names on the high street were lost, including Wilko, many major companies had already gone bankrupt before 2022, the center said, such as Topshop owner Arcadia, Jessops and Debenhams.
“The cost of living crisis, inflation and rise in interest rates have prompted many consumers to tighten their belts, causing retail spending to fall,” said Prof Bamfield.
“Retailers themselves have faced rising energy and occupancy costs, staff shortages and declining demand, making rebuilding profits after extensive store closures during the pandemic exceptionally difficult.”
Besides Wilko, which employed around 12,000 people when it went bust, the biggest failures of 2023 include UK Flooring Direct, Planet Organic and Tile Giant.
The Center for Retail Research said most stores were closed as companies tried to reorganize and cut costs rather than face bankruptcy.
However, experts have warned that more bankruptcies are likely this year as consumers tighten their belts and borrowing costs for businesses soar.
According to official figures, about 14% of bankruptcies last year occurred in retail businesses.
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