Latest news with #VikingCentre
The Sun
18-05-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Major outdoor chain with 300 branches shuts doors to beloved store forever after launching ‘everything must go' sale
A HUGE outdoor retailer with over 300 branches has shut down a beloved store today. The chain launched an 'everything must go' sale as it put the shutters down for the last time. 2 2 Trespass has closed down its Aylesbury shop in Buckinghamshire. The store was one of the very first that shoppers would have seen after entering the Frias Square Shopping Centre. Ahead of its closure, the shop erected a huge sign in the window which announced a closing down sale. The chain of outdoor retailers announced in July 2023 that six of its outlets would be closing its doors for good. The reason given for this was that the retailer had suffered from a lack of customers. In 2024, at least 12 Trespass stores officially closed. Shoppers in Coventry, Norwich and Middlesbrough have all had to wave goodbye to their local Trespass stores. The Middlesbrough store had only opened two years ago, after taking over from Monsoon who shut down in 2020. The wave of closures has come after scores of shops have put the shutters down for good in recent years. Some businesses have blamed the government, arguing that Rachel Reeves' decision to raise National Insurance contributions for businesses has made it more expensive to run a company. The Viking Centre: Britain's first American-style mall faces demolition However, the Chancellor has said that her decisions were necessary to stabilise an economy she inherited from the previous Tory government. In April 2025, the economy grew by 0.5 per cent as investment in the country grew. Other businesses have pointed the blame at 'Covid' and 'Brexit', saying that it has become more difficult to hire skilled workers. A spokesperson for La Goccia, a luxury restaurant in Covent Garden, was forced to close due to economic pressures and because of hiring problems. RETAIL PAIN IN 2025 The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. Research by the British Chambers of Commerce shows that more than half of companies plan to raise prices by early April. A survey of more than 4,800 firms found that 55% expect prices to increase in the next three months, up from 39% in a similar poll conducted in the latter half of 2024. Three-quarters of companies cited the cost of employing people as their primary financial pressure. 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."
Scottish Sun
14-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Exact date Britain's first American-style shopping centre will be DEMOLISHED by this year – with work to start in weeks
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) BRITAIN'S first American-style shopping centre will be demolished this year - and work is set to start in weeks. The Viking Centre in Jarrow, near Newcastle is being partially pulled down as part of a major revamp. 2 The Viking Centre in Jarrow is set to be demolished by December 1 Credit: Viking Centre 2 The shopping centre was the first American-style shopping centre in Britain Credit: Getty The plans have been given the go ahead from the council and demolition works are set to commence in the coming weeks. As part of the demolition a number of vacant units will be pulled down including the beloved former Wilko building on the corner of Bede Precinct and Ellison Street. Also being torn down are a number of former charity shops. But it's not all bad news with locals relieved to hear that the Jarrow Buffs Social Club at 96 Ellison Street will remain untouched. read more on demolitions BRICK BY BRICK Windows torn out of Captain Tom's daughter's spa complex as work continues The major overhaul is aimed at opening up space for future developments on the site. The work is due to start in July and will be finished by 1 December 2025, meaning the site could be ready just in time for the busy Christmas season. The application for the demolition was submitted earlier this year by Sheet Anchor Investments Limited, the owners of the site, and was approved on April 29, 2025. No objections were received during the public consultation period. Planning officers noted that the method of demolition was appropriate for the site and that the restoration plans would leave the area in a 'tidy condition'. The buildings will be knocked down using a top-down method. Wrecking machines move in to demolish 'ghost town' Scots estate dubbed 'Britain's Chernobyl' This means the roof will be removed first, followed by the perimeter walls. The units will then be demolished down to 'slab level'. This comes as part of a string of demolitions across the country. The once-thriving Broadmarsh shopping centre in Nottingham is set to be pulled down, sparking fierce backlash from locals. Once a bustling hotspot in the 90s, Broadmarsh has stood abandoned since 2020 when its former operator collapsed into administration. Now, years of decay could soon come to an end. Homes England, the government agency tasked with boosting affordable housing, has snapped up the site and submitted major plans to Nottingham City Council. They want permission to bulldoze the derelict structure and kick start a huge redevelopment project in the heart of the city. The £650 million revamp promises 1,000 new homes, 20,000 square metres of retail, office, and community space, and around 2,000 full-time jobs once finished.
Scottish Sun
12-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Britain's first ever American-style shopping centre to be DEMOLISHED in huge overhaul this summer
Part of UK retail site to be flattened after council approval SHOP HAPPY Britain's first ever American-style shopping centre to be DEMOLISHED in huge overhaul this summer THE UK's first American-style shopping centre is set to be bulldozed this summer after the council gave the go-ahead for a major revamp. The Viking Centre, located in Jarrow town centre, will undergo partial demolition following approval from South Tyneside Council's planning department. 3 The overhaul is aimed at opening up space for future redevelopment Credit: Viking Centre 3 No objections were received during the public consultation period. Credit: Getty The plans focus on tearing down "a number of units that are largely vacant, including the former Wilko building on the corner of Bede Precinct and Ellison Street". Several of the neighbouring units have been standing empty, with some last used by charity shops. The overhaul is aimed at opening up space for future redevelopment. According to the approved application, the Jarrow Buffs Social Club at 96 Ellison Street is not included in the demolition area and will remain untouched. The application was submitted earlier this year by Sheet Anchor Investments Limited, the owners of the site, and was approved on April 29, 2025. No objections were received during the public consultation period. Planning officers noted that the method of demolition was appropriate for the site and that the restoration plans would leave the area in a 'tidy condition'. Demolition work is due to start in July and finish by 1 December 2025, reports Chronicle Live. That means the site could be cleared in time for the busy Christmas season. The buildings will be knocked down using a top-down method, with the roof removed first, followed by perimeter walls. Major high street retailer with 17 Scots stores to close 'a THIRD' of UK shops They will be demolished down to 'slab level'. Extra safety and environmental measures will be in place, including fencing, dust suppression systems, and a wheel wash system for all site vehicles. Council officials confirmed the site is not listed, not part of a conservation area, and holds no local or national protected status. Checks with the council's countryside team found minimal risk to protected species like bats or nesting birds. However, two informative notes were included as a precaution. Under planning rules, demolition must begin within five years – but documents confirm that work on the Viking Centre is firmly scheduled to begin this summer. The Sun has approached South Tyneside Council for comment. Why are retailers closing shops? EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre's decline The Sun's business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors. In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping. Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open. The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April 2025, will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40. In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed. The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing. Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns. Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead. In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Carpetright, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Paperchase, Ted Baker, The Body Shop, Topshop and Wilko to name a few. What's increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online. They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year
