Is the High Street doomed

[hash tag]

No surprises really.

 

[ska invita]

The independent stats are going to be crucial. Lots of shops propped up by debt to pay rent. Central London indie eateries look massacred from what I've seen so far.

 

[skyscraper101]

Thorntons now

Meltdown at Thorntons: chocolatier to shut all shops in bitter pandemic blow

After more than a century, the ‘best sweetshop in town’ to shut stores down

www.standard.co.uk

 

[hash tag]

Scuppered by the pandemic and supermarkets it's not like they don't have an online presence, because they do. They are no longer locally family owned and no better than average chocolate. Very sad all the same

Ferrero Group official website

The Ferrero Group brings joy to people around the world with its much-loved treats. Dedication to quality and commitment to the communities since 1946.

www.thorntons.co.uk

 

[skyscraper101]

Tbh, I’ve always found chocolate shops a bit of a weird one. Like that other one, Hotel Chocolate.

Not that I don’t like chocolate, I do. It’s just an entire store for high end chocolate never appealed to me as a concept. At least not in the same way as a proper sweet shop with other things like toffees and fudge and boiled sweets etc.

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

Tbh, I’ve always found chocolate shops a bit of a weird one. Like that other one, Hotel Chocolate.

Not that I don’t like chocolate, I do. It’s just an entire store for high end chocolate never appealed to me as a concept. At least not in the same way as a proper sweet shop with other things like toffees and fudge and boiled sweets etc.

They're dead handy if you want a moderately extravagant gift and don't have any decent ideas.

I don't think I'd ever pop into one of those places to buy something for myself.

 

[skyscraper101]

If nothing else it demonstrates just how much these places still depend on the seasonal footfall from Christmas / Easter for survival.

 

[hash tag]

Tbh, I’ve always found chocolate shops a bit of a weird one. Like that other one, Hotel Chocolate.

Not that I don’t like chocolate, I do. It’s just an entire store for high end chocolate never appealed to me as a concept. At least not in the same way as a proper sweet shop with other things like toffees and fudge and boiled sweets etc.

Thornton's or hotel chocolat high end

On the other side of this coin, guess who doesn't appear to be impacted too badly; estate agents

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

There's a hotel chocolate place in Guildford and they do whippy style ice cream, got one for BB2 and the price, well, had to go and have a beer just to calm down from the shagging I took at the till.

 

[skyscraper101]

Thornton's or hotel chocolat high end

I mean, pretty much all my chocolate comes from the supermarket and is stuff like bounty/crunchie/picnic etc

 

[hash tag]

Sadly yes.

 

[hash tag]

There's a hotel chocolate place in Guildford and they do whippy style ice cream, got one for BB2 and the price, well, had to go and have a beer just to calm down from the shagging I took at the till.

Chocolate chain store giving the illusion of being high end by charging high end prices. Have you tried looking even closer to home? Handmade Chocolate Archives - ARTHOUSE Unlimited

 

[Artaxerxes]

The Dark Ages – About Iceland

about.iceland.co.uk

So Bill Grimsey sees himself as a rescuer of companies.As the Focus DIY chief executive prepared for a meeting with creditors of Focus DIY at which he persuaded them to back a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), Grimsey gleefully told radio listeners that he ‘saved the Iceland group in 2001’.



Is this the same Iceland that, under Grimsey’s leadership, renamed itself Big Food Group and subsequently saw sales fall off a cliff?
Could it have been the same Iceland that decided that one route to recovery was to curtail the company’s final salary pension scheme?
Was this the company that eventually tumbled, frail and exhausted, into the hands of a consortium headed by the Icelandic retail group Baugur? Indeed it is.



And if Grimsey thinks that pushing through a CVA for Focus is the same as ‘rescuing’ it, then he has a different definition of the word Let’s be clear: with a CVA, creditors lose out. It is an admission of mistakes made and a way of trying to escape the full consequences of past actions.

 

[MickiQ]

The Dark Ages – About Iceland

about.iceland.co.uk

that article can basically be summarised as company was doing OK under old boss.
Old boss leaves and is replaced by City whizzkid as new boss
New boss fucks everything up
Old boss comes back and cleans up mess
City whizzkid who is clearly delusional brags about how good he is.

 

[cupid_stunt]

More bad news from John Lewis.

The John Lewis Partnership has revealed plans to close a further eight stores, leaving 1,465 jobs under threat.

It cut 1,300 jobs last year through eight other store closures.

The latest decision, which followed extensive talks with landlords, leaves just 34 John Lewis stores.

Those to be shut down permanently were listed as: Ashford, Basingstoke, Chester, Tunbridge Wells, Aberdeen, Peterborough, Sheffield and York.

COVID-19: John Lewis stores scrapped with almost 1,500 jobs at risk - is yours closing?

The company reveals the locations of the latest sites that will not reopen following the lifting of lockdown restrictions.

news.sky.com

 

[hash tag]

Makes you wonder about the longer term viability of John Lewis.

 

[cupid_stunt]

Makes you wonder about the longer term viability of John Lewis.

Apparently they are going to start putting John Lewis click & collect outlets within some of their Waitrose supermarkets, so should survive in some form.

 

[hash tag]

Maybe they are reworking that one, but i am sure you have been able to collect John Lewis stuff from Waitrose for quite a long time now. It has certainly been the case around these parts.

 

[cupid_stunt]

More jobs to go and more empty shop units, as Santander plans to close 111 branches, including my local branch, which I've been expecting for a long time, as it's hardly used, and it seemed odd that they maintained two in town, I'll just pay in at my local sub-Post Office instead, still gutted for the staff.

Banking giant Santander has announced plans to close over 100 branches across the UK, after customer changes were inflicted by the Covid pandemic. The firm announced on Thursday that all of the affected sites will close by the end of August after branch transactions fell by 33% over the two years before the pandemic - declining by a further 50% in 2020. According to the bank, it will mean a remaining network of 452 branches following the proposed changes.

Adam Bishop, head of branches, said: “Branch usage by customers has fallen considerably over recent years so we have made the difficult decision to consolidate our presence in areas where we have multiple branches relatively close together. The majority of the closing branches are within three miles of another branch and the furthest is five miles away.

Full list of 111 Santander bank branches to close as Covid hits firm

The firm has released the full list of branches

www.business-live.co.uk

 

[muscovyduck]

3-5 miles is fucking ages if you live in a big city, especially if it's 3-5 miles in the wrong direction

 

[cupid_stunt]

3-5 miles is fucking ages if you live in a big city, especially if it's 3-5 miles in the wrong direction

Most banks have arrangements for everyday banking to be done at the Post Office, which saves the day somewhat, and gives the PO extra revenue.

Everyday Banking | Personal and Business Accounts | Post Office

Manage your personal or business Everyday Banking over the counter at any of our 11,500 UK Post Offices. Learn more about our banking services at postoffice.co.uk.

www.postoffice.co.uk

 

[MickiQ]

Most banks have arrangements for everyday banking to be done at the Post Office, which saves the day somewhat, and gives the PO extra revenue.

Everyday Banking | Personal and Business Accounts | Post Office

Manage your personal or business Everyday Banking over the counter at any of our 11,500 UK Post Offices. Learn more about our banking services at postoffice.co.uk.

www.postoffice.co.uk

I have only deposited 2 or 3 cheques in the last 2 years and the nearest Natwest is a pain to park near so I would have to drive 15 mins and then walk for another 10 or drive 20 mins and walk for 5 if I went the next nearest.
On the other hand the local PO is a 10 minute walk from my house, it usually takes an extra day for the money to appear in my account but I am truly not arsed about that.

 

[not-bono-ever]

It does make laundering physical cash slightly harder these days. Banks are becoming a slog for non reportable sums and many retailers have a cap on physical cash - most franchised car dealers will only take a grand in cash for insurance reasons - the rest on finance or card. Tough times for those looking to move on bundles of soiled low value notes

 

[hash tag]

More jobs to go and more empty shop units, as Santander plans to close 111 branches, including my local branch, which I've been expecting for a long time, as it's hardly used, and it seemed odd that they maintained two in town, I'll just pay in at my local sub-Post Office instead, still gutted for the staff.

Full list of 111 Santander bank branches to close as Covid hits firm

The firm has released the full list of branches

www.business-live.co.uk

Jesus, in my dim past, I have worked in at least 3 of those branches when they were still Abbey, maybe more

 

[hash tag]

Just checked the list again- I worked at 6 of those branches scheduled for closure
Cant believe they are closing down places like Putney High Street. That High Street is always so busy, so much so
that I make a point of avoiding the place altogether.
I used to get to the Putney branch on time, got dragged down the Spotted Horse by the manager most days about 12, because I was
quite good at computer games and the loser bought the drinks, which meant that my boss did not shell out very often when playing against lots of other locals.
Stayed in pub until about closing time at 3, so, well inebriated, tried to find my way home afterwards.

 

[Badgers]

 

[Artaxerxes]

The landlords are pissed so

 

[Orang Utan]

won’t someone come for the landlords?

 

[hash tag]

Jessops. Again

Camera retailer Jessops calls in administrators for a second time

Move by firm controlled by Dragons’ Den panellist Peter Jones puts 120 jobs at risk

www.theguardian.com

 

[ska invita]

The landlords are pissed so

Landlord strike