Retailers across the UK are bracing for a challenging year, with over 17,000 stores projected to close in 2025. This alarming prediction follows Labour's fiscal Budget, which has introduced higher costs for businesses.
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The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) revealed that 13,479 stores shut their doors in 2024, marking a 28% increase from the previous year. The outlook for 2025 is even bleaker, with closures anticipated to rise by 30%, reaching 17,350. Independent retailers are expected to bear the brunt of these closures, with 14,660 closures predicted—almost double the 7,793 that shut down last year.
Joshua Bamfield of the CRR commented, 'Whilst 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.'
The retail sector is facing a significant financial strain, with the British Retail Consortium estimating an additional £70 billion in taxes this year. These include changes to National Insurance, increased business rates, a higher National Living Wage, and new levies on packaging due to come into effect from 1 April. Real estate firm Altus Group predicts the average shop's rates bill will more than double, rising from £3,589 to £8,613.
A Treasury spokesperson defended the government's measures, stating, 'We delivered a once-in-a-parliament Budget to wipe the slate clean and deliver the stability businesses so desperately need. Without our action, business rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure would have ended in April this year. Instead, we are extending 40% relief for 250,000 properties and introducing a new permanently lower business rate in 2026, while more than half of employers will either see a cut or no change in their National Insurance bills.'
As the retail landscape faces these challenges, businesses and analysts alike are preparing for a tumultuous year ahead.
Source: www.retailgazette.co.uk