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High street fashion chain with 350 stores to shut shop in days as up to 70% off closing down sale launched
Find out why New Look is shutting nearly 100 shops across the country
A MAJOR high street fashion chain will be closing one of its stores in a matter of days.
New Look has confirmed it is shutting its Bexleyheath store for good on April 19, in the latest blow to the high street.
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The retailer is planning to axe nearly 100 locations as it struggles with tax changes announced in the Autumn budget.
A massive closing down sale is now on in Bexleyheath and shoppers say they have never seen the store so busy.
A shopper on the Facebook group shared an image of racks of sale items.
Most items are now 70% off, with rails of tops selling for £3 and summer dresses priced at £5.
More on shop closures
A New Look spokesperson said: "Our Bexleyheath store is set to close on 19 April.
"We would like to thank all of our colleagues and the local community for their support over the years.
"We hope customers continue to shop with us online at newlook.com, where our full product ranges can be found."
Social media users shared their dismay at the shop's closure, with one writing: "Sad for all the staff losing their jobs (my daughter included)."
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Another said: "All the ladies are losing there jobs so sad."
A third person wrote: "I've never seen it so busy it's sad."
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Bexleyheath is the latest New Look location to close this year, after two branches shut last month.
The site in St Austell and Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, closed down on March 9.
Meanwhile the St Austell branch in Cornwall shut permanently on March 4.
In February, the retailer's branch in Porth, Rhondda Cynon Taf closed.
And January saw the closures of stores in Loughborough, Wickford and Bracknell.
Roughly a quarter of the retailer's more than 360 stores had been at risk when their leases expire.
This equates to about 90 stores, impacting New Look's 8,000-strong workforce significantly.
New Look has already cut its stores substantially.
Back in 2018, it had about 600 stores across the UK.
It's also wound down its operations in Ireland, announcing it would shut all 26 stores across the country.
The move has affected 347 jobs.
It's understood the latest drive to accelerate shop closures and sales is driven by the recent increase in National Insurance contributions for employers.
The increase was announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in October and retailers had warned they would be hit hard by the change.
The British Retail Consortium predicted it would create a £2.3billion bill for the sector.
A New Look spokesperson said previously: "Our store estate is an important part of our business, alongside our best-in-class website and app.
"We have recently invested over £3million in our stores in Greater Manchester to trial new omnichannel initiatives to improve customer experience.
"We also continue to invest in our thriving online platform which has resulted in a strong online sales performance, with volumes significantly outpacing last year and an improved online margin.
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"On occasion we do have to close stores, either due to the landlord’s request or because the site becomes unviable.
"However, we always remain on the lookout for appropriate new opportunities across the country and continue to invest in our existing store estate."
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.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April 2025, will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40.
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.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Carpetright, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Paperchase, Ted Baker, The Body Shop, Topshop and Wilko 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.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
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