Marks and Spencer announces closure of ANOTHER store in blow to UK city

Marks and Spencer has confirmed that one of its long-running Yorkshire stores will close, dealing a fresh blow to a city centre already struggling with falling footfall. The retailer has announced that its Kirkgate branch in Wakefield will shut after decades of trading, though a final closing date has not yet been given.

The company said the decision reflects how customers are choosing to shop, with more people buying online or travelling to larger retail parks instead of traditional high street locations. The news has triggered disappointment locally as Wakefield continues to face pressure from declining visitor numbers and rising operating costs.

Following the announcement, a message was shared on a Facebook group that read: “We’re sorry to hear that M&S has announced it will be closing its Kirkgate store, after many years in Wakefield city centre.”

Many locals expressed their frustration in the comments section, with one customer saying: “It was my family’s favourite shop.” Another asked: “Why are all the shops closing nowadays?”

Responding to the news Wakefield BID added: “While this represents a change within Wakefield city centre, it reflects a wider shift in strategy taking place across the UK rather than a decision linked to local city-centre performance.

“Across the country, M&S has been moving away from traditional city-centre department stores for a number of years, responding to changing shopping habits and focusing investment on different store formats.

“Similar closures and relocations have taken place in towns and cities nationwide as high streets continue to evolve.

“No single retailer defines the future of Wakefield city centre. Its strength lies in its mix of businesses, activity and experiences, and in its ability to adapt as patterns continue to change.

“Wakefield BID will continue to champion the city centre, support its businesses and focus on keeping Wakefield a place people want to visit, spend time and do business.”

Retail analysts say Wakefield is not alone. Town and city centres across Britain are seeing long-established stores review whether older units remain viable.

Many major chains are shifting investment towards fewer, larger sites as they reshape their estates.

The Centre for Retail Research has warned that thousands more closures are likely in the year ahead.

Its latest forecast suggests around 17,350 retail premises could close in 2025, following a difficult 2024 in which roughly 13,000 shops shut permanently, a 28% rise compared with the previous year.

Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the Centre, said that the trend remains worrying.

He added: “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.”

Retailers are facing a combination of rising costs and weaker consumer spending.

According to the British Retail Consortium, upcoming changes to employer National Insurance contributions will add £2.3billion in costs for the sector from April.

At the same time, the national minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour, with workers aged 18 to 20 seeing their pay increase to £10 an hour, up by £1.40.

Industry groups say these pressures come on top of high energy costs and the ongoing impact of the cost of living crisis, which has led many households to cut back on non-essential purchases.

Professor Bamfield warned that the combination of falling demand and rising bills could push job losses to levels not seen since the pandemic. 

He said: “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.”