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UK High Street Closures Intensify as Coopers Shuts All Stores and The Original Factory Shop Cuts 31 Branches

Rising costs alongside online competition are pushing retailers to restructure and scale back physical estates.

Overview

  • Hardware chain Coopers is closing all remaining branches by Saturday at 3pm after nearly a century in business, with staff citing weak footfall and some locations losing in‑store Post Office kiosks.
  • The Original Factory Shop has closed or announced 31 locations for closure in 2025, including a Spennymoor shutdown after a closing sale, following a Modella Capital takeover and rent renegotiations.
  • New Look shut its Potteries Centre store on October 14 and will close its Hinckley branch on December 9, as the chain trims a UK estate listed at 338 stores and highlights ongoing omni‑channel investment.
  • Fashion chains including River Island, Quiz, Monki and Select Fashion feature prominently in rolling closure lists tallying hundreds of UK shutdowns this year across towns and cities.
  • This week’s closures also included a Poundland in Rochdale and six NatWest branches, with trade bodies warning that business‑rate changes could put more large shops at risk.