What retailer do you think will go bust next?

[good96]

My money is on Poundstretcher. Went into my local one today. Shelves empty, looking old and dirty and prices aren’t really cheap for a discount retailer…

WH Smith are pretty much held up by their airport and train station stores, which is how come they keep on going.

Oh yes! But not the thread.

Boots seem to really vary- the one on the out of town retail park is like something out of a 1980's communist state with about 5 things on the shelves and a pharmacist who acts like you're trying to buy Fentanyl if you want anything stronger than Lockets. The one in the "in town shopping centre" is great , fully stocked and always really really busy. The opticians does really well there too.

WHSmith is unkillable. They've been on these threads for years and still going.

Next stores aren't amazing but their online is very good with multiple brands and next day delivery and their bedding is really good for the price.

We're just naming random shops now?

Got to be Quiz

I agree with WH Smith’s, but Boots have become quite swanky lately. It was somewhere I avoided for years, but now I’ll mooch around it like I would a John Lewis.

I hope Claire's goes. I hate with a passion their "buy three get three free" on everything. Just price things more reasonably so I can buy just the one or two things I need!

I once wanted two things so then felt compelled to buy one more to get three extra things free. Spent ages in there and ended up with tat I didn't want.

Would've agreed with you 2 years ago but they've really done a 180° with women's and men's clothing in the last 18 months. Really good value for money and really nice, super trendy clothing that appeals to all ages, especially younger people. Hope it continues because I'm keen to replace all the fast fashion tat I own with nicer stuff from Marks'

Make sure you double check. I thought I'd got a bargain recently and bought with Amazon, only to find that Tesco's standard price is cheaper. Amazon is full of single-product home traders buying in bulk and selling for 10+% more than Tesco.

On my local high street there has been a Co-op for 125 years and it's closing at the end of the month. Prices have been high in there for some time and when a Lidl opened about 5 minutes walk away, it was game over. Sad though.

Next are thriving.

Boots looking for a buyer- website stuck in 2005.

Argos will just be inside large Sainsburys as most are already.

m&s have closed many stores already, they seem to be bouncing back.

Our local Boots has closed down. A private pharmacy has taken over the premises. And the Works went a while ago.

I live in a small village. Our nearest town is a small market town. We have a large ish coop , a small co op in the High Street and, until recently , yet another Co Op at the petrol station. There aren't enough people for any other supermarket to open here. Public transport is patchy at best so, if you dont have a car, that's all the choice there is.

I just googled awful m and s pink dress mumsnet and loads of threads came up. But the scary things was they were from 2017!!! I could have sworn it was from 3 years ago - not 8 years!!! I'm completely off track with this thread but isn't it funny the things that make an impression.

I wonder about Sweaty Betty, they seem to have back to back sales on these days.

But that just means it is a profitable niche. Some other company could bid for the business.

I bought a lovely Harris Tweed blazer there for a bargain £100 over Christmas, and I’m in my 30s. Although I was about 40 years too young for anything else they sold.

Our town centre WH Smiths is actually closing. It's been grim for a while but finally reached the end of the line. Even relocating the post office into the shop didn't help.

I'm still sad about Paperchase going bust. There's no where to buy decent cards or funky pens anymore.

Yeah, sure the staff would agree....

Next aren't going anywhere, their Directory side is very successful and they just keep hoovering up all the small brands, some Next shops might close but the online side is huge, it was in the news recently about their profits

Oh, and our Body Shop is always empty. It used to be rammed with teens back in its heyday. Even a couple of years ago my teen daughter would shop there but she went in the other day came straight out declaring she wasn't going to spend £10 on a shampoo that isn't all that great.

Agree - I bought something from them when they started out and it was well made and nice. Ordered some earrings recently in the same and was shocked that they were much tinier than the photos (to a level of near misrepresentation IMO), and looked like they came from Claire’s.

Now I’ve said that, I also think Claire’s is dreadful at the moment - even kids aren’t that interested in their tat these days - and also Accessorize and Monsoon must be a bit shaky - all the products are massively overpriced for what they are.

Argos - no idea how they're still going in the face of next-day-everything from Amazon.

Pizza Express - keeps on surviving despite the huge debt mountain. It's fundamentally a good business but the level of debt has to eventually overwhelm it.

Most Argos stores have moved into Sainsbury's or deliver to Sainsbury's local stores for collection. I definitely prefer to buy from stores with some semblance of physical presence over Amazon, when feasible.

Yes to all of these!

I was in another town recently and noticed a Rymans, couldn’t believe it was still going!

Happened to need a few stationery bits but walked out with nothing as it was all so expensive!