THE Original Factory Shop is shutting nine stores this week as up to 80% off closing down sales are launched at a host of locations.
The fragrance, homeware and fashion retailer is pulling down the shutters on shops across the UK between Thursday and Saturday.
AlamyThe Original Factory Shop is closing nine stores this week[/caption]One branch in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire, will permanently close on June 26, while eight others will shut on June 28, including stores in Pershore, Worcestershire, and Shaftesbury, Dorset.
Closing down sales have been launched at a number of the soon-to-be shut shops.
Prices at the Milford Haven site have been slashed by 30% with discounts on drinks, perfume and footwear.
The Pershore branch has also reduced prices on beauty and pet products, jewellery and more by up to 50%.
The Normanton branch has also cut prices by up to 50%, while stock at the Middlewich store is selling for up to 80% off.
Here is the full list of The Original Factory Shop (TOFS) branches set to close this week, as well as three others shutting from July:
Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire – June 26 Perth – June 28 Chester Le Street, County Durham – June 28 Arbroath, Angus – June 28 Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire – June 28 Pershore, Worcestershire – June 28 Normanton, West Yorkshire – June 28 Peterhead, Aberdeenshire – June 28 Shaftesbury, Dorset – June 28 Staveley, Cumbria – July 12 Cupar, Fife – July 27 Middlewich, Cheshire – TBCNews of the branches closing this week has not been met well by shoppers and locals.
Commenting on the Abroath closure, one customer said: “Another one bites the dust on the high street.
“Going to be a ghost town soon enough.”
A second, commenting on the Pershore closure, said: “End of an era that is.”
A third, finding out about the Cupar branch shutting, said: “So sorry to see you’re closing down.”
What’s happening with The Original Factory Shop?
TOFS was bought by Modella Capital in February which has since launched a restructuring effort to renegotiate rents at 88 of the retail chain’s stores.
Modella, a private equity firm, is known for taking on struggling retailers, having recently acquired Hobbycraft and WHSmith‘s high street shops.
Modella drew up plans to initiate a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) for TOFS at the end of April.
A CVA is a way of restructuring that means a business can continue trading while negotiating its debts, for example by cutting rent costs with landlords.
A TOFS spokesperson previously told The Press and Journal a “number of loss-making stores will have to close” as part of the CVA.
They continued: “Closing stores is always a tough decision and we are committed to keeping as many stores open as possible.
“This is, however, dependent on successful negotiations with landlords as we strive to build a sustainable and successful business for the future.”
The Original Factory shop has already shuttered more than a dozen stores over the past 12 months.
These are the locations that closed in 2024:
Brightlingsea, Essex Bodmin, Cornwall Chepstow, Wales Fakenham, Norfolk Harwich, Essex Mildenhall, Suffolk Padiham, Lancashire Taunton, Somerset Deal, Kent Haverfordwest, WalesHIGH STREET STRUGGLES
The Original Factory Shop is not the only retailer languishing across the high street.
The retail sector has struggled for years, with thousands of shops closing across the UK.
The Centre for Retail Research has described the sector as going through a “permacrisis” since the 2008 financial crash.
In 2024 alone, more than 13,000 high street stores were shuttered for good, according to the Centre.
It is also predicting the number of store closures to rise this year, blaming the increase on a hike to employer National Insurance contributions and the national minimum wage.
RETAIL PAIN IN 2025
The British Retail Consortium predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs would cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
Research published by the British Chambers of Commerce earlier this year shows that more than half of companies planned to raise prices by early April.
Separately, the Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.
It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: “The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025.”
Professor Bamfield has also warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector.
“By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer’s household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020.”
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