Shops you are surprised are still going

[fajitaaaa]

WHSMITHS - who is buying from them? Anything other than a emergency magazine for the train and maybe a bottle of water? But some of their stores are HUGE!

FAT FACE - always a massive sale on!

WHSmiths have a huge wholesale arm. They supply a lot of smaller shops with papers and magazines. Whether that will weather this storm as fewer buy print...who knows

H Samuel, cabinets of strange ornaments everywhere.

I’m personally convinced that WH Smith is a front for money laundering and no one can convince me any different😂

I don’t understand how Shoezone is still standing

Argos, there’s never anything in stock and you can’t see anything before you buy it.

With WH Smith's it's the sites they own and own the leases too these are the value of the business. Airports, stations and services. Pure cash for old crap 😂

This was pre Covid and they took a big hit during covid but it explains how WH Smith keeps going. It’s not the high street stores www.wired.co.uk/article/whsmith-high-street-success

last year I think they posted their highest ever revenues

I dunno, they survived covid somehow!

Pound stretcher. My local one has had a closing down sale/ 50 per cent off for years. It's still here.

I’ve used tapi - ended up using them for 2 full houses when we moved... the cheap carpets are up the back and with fitting were much cheaper than anyone rise we tried.

I picked some craft bits up from Hobbycraft for DD last week and commented to DH that I can't believe it's still going!

M&S. I think they’ve been insanely lucky not to go to the wall and have survived by picking up some of Debenhams’ customers for menswear and similar.

Am also surprised Paperchase hasn’t folded (!) yet (sorry, this is sounding like a Two Ronnies news item), maybe because WH Smiths is worse?

Oh, and the Body Shop. Lost its way when L’Oreal bought it up, and it never regained its original ethos.

Peacocks have stores in quite a few small towns where they are the only option for clothes/shoes

They have some decent stuff too at fairly low prices - Rita high rise jeans, underwear/nightwear

I don't personally go to Shoezone as I have problems with my feet and am quite fussy about my shoes. However, I live in quite a deprived area and our Shoezone is always really busy. Everyone needs shoes and if you don't have much money, the shoes from there don't seem bad everything considered.

I automatically thought of WHSmiths too, even though I was in one today in our town, with kids who did indeed buy some overpriced notebooks. The prices of their cards are ridiculous. Still, as a previous poster said, I would be sad if they closed.

I thought WHSmiths too. The ones near me always look like there are no lights on.

Fatface in our city has just closed down.

I miss proper department stores with concessions. Surely it’d have been better for defunct stores to all be under one roof like the olden days (like, 3 years ago)

White stuff - ridiculous prices.
seasalt - boring and pricey

Next.

Used to be so reliable and reasonable quality. Now it's overpriced tat.

Fascinating thank you for sharing!

When you live in a small town with rubbish shops peacocks is a life saver. Little bit of everything. Very handy!

My first thought was WH Smith as well. Can't believe they are still going.

@PieonaBarm H Samuel is a good shout too, "cabinets of strange ornaments everywhere" is absolutely spot on

Boots. Expensive, always running out of stock and online delivery is really hit and miss in my experience.

I used to work in WH Smith in the late 90's, it was the most fabulous shop!

But now, very odd, grubby, and full of extortionately priced tat!

Boots. Incredibly expensive, tiny range, mostly overpriced tat. Almost everything they sell can be found cheaper elsewhere. Terrible service at the pharmacy which is understaffed. Shop staffed by people who wander aimlessly about, nobody at the tills.

Select! Sizing is off, clothes are Skegness market material.

I am always in there. It is me. I am single-handedly keeping Hobbycraft going