Work has already started on refitting the shop in Foregate Street, which is expected to open on 2 April.
It won't come as any surprise to British shoppers that the high street is not what it used to be. Empty units abound in most towns and cities, even busy tourist centres like Chester. The number of retail units vacant increased by over 20,000 in the first six months of 2018 alone.
New Look has been finding it tough both at home and abroada for several years now. The discount fashion retailer announced 85 UK store closures from its portfolio of over 500 in late 2018. It also announced plans to pull out of China entirely and concentrate on its remaining UK stores.
Bucking the trend of decline in town centres, charity shops have become such a common sight in the last couple of decades that it's now a rare high street that doesn't boast several. Their success in recent years is down to a number of factors, including favourable business rates, largely volunteer staff and consumers' desire to give to good causes.
The picture isn't quite as rosy for charity shops as is sometimes imagined, though. The ever-increasing popularity of online shopping has hit them as it has traditional retailers, while some charity shop staples such as DVDs now have to be sold for rock-bottom prices. For several years now, closures have outpaced openings.
There seems no prospect of the popularity of online shopping diminishing, with most people now happy to buy clothing from internet retailers. Even car sales are moving online, with Tesla announcing the closure of its physical showrooms. Shops that do prosper may be either large stores like the Chester BHF that can offer a wide range of services or those in niche, specialist segments where personal service is still seen as vital.
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The neglected area around Nottingham train station may be undergoing a complete regeneration if recent plans submitted to Nottingham City Council are approved.
Starbucks has just announced its launch in Colombia, the country which has supplied its Arabica coffee since 1971. With a first store opening in Bogota in 2014 and 50 before 2020, the local Juan Valdez chain sees the arrival of a formidable competitor.
Men tend to buy more clothes and fashion brands don't want to miss the opportunity. New Look is planning the opening of five stores, just for them, in the coming months.
The very first Poudland store opened in December 1990, in Burton-upon-Trent. Now the discount retailer counts about 550 stores, for the UK only. It entered the stock market in March 2014. And just passed the £1 billion sales mark.
