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.
News in the same category
Big discount retailers continue to change the face of UK high streets, with Bargain Buys opening a large store in Fox Den Road, Stoke Gifford, Bristol. Their third in the Bristol area this year.
In British culture, it is fair to say that M&S has long been regarded as the kind of food shop that you visit when you want to host or entertain in a slightly more upscale fashion than normal.
The first supermarket to adopt the Living Wage, Lidl also plans to open 300 small to medium-sized locations in the heart of London.
Danish homeware and lifestyle brand, Sostrene Grene are opening a new store in the heart of Manchester.
