Latest news with #GAME
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Full list of nine chains closing shops on the high street in August – is your local at risk?
THIS August, the UK high street faces another wave of store closures, hitting shoppers and communities hard. From well-known budget favourites like Poundland to popular fashion brands such as New Look and Monki, a raft of familiar names are set to disappear. 1 The cost of running shops, from soaring energy bills to higher National Insurance, is pushing retailers to cut back. At the same time, more shoppers are going online, and with the cost-of-living crisis biting, people have less cash to spend. The result? Shops are closing, and high streets are starting to suffer. If you want to know which stores are shutting soon, we've got the full list right here. Apple Apple will close its two-floor Bristol city centre store in Cabot Circus on August 9, 2025 after 15 years. The closure comes as part of a redevelopment plan for Cabot Circus, which will replace the store with new flexible workspaces and public areas. GAME GAME is closing several UK stores this summer as part of a wider restructuring by parent company Frasers Group. Upcoming closures include Festival Place in Basingstoke on August 10, Southend High Street later in August, and Chatham in September. The Nottingham Victoria Centre store closed in July. Stores are running 20% off clearance sales ahead of closure. BrewDog to close TEN pubs across UK as staff set to be axed Hobbycraft As part of a major restructuring, arts and crafts retailer Hobbycraft will close three stores in early August 2025. The affected locations are Bromborough, Southport, and Stratford Upon Avon. The closures follow a strategic review aimed at reshaping the business. Monki Monki, owned by H&M, is closing its Glasgow store in Buchanan Galleries in August. The retailer has already shuttered branches in Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, Sheffield, and London earlier this year. The online store has also closed, with the brand being integrated into H&M's Weekday line. One remaining Monki store in Bristol remains open but will either close later this year or be transformed into a new concept. New Look New Look is continuing its wave of store closures, with a branch in Neath, Wales, set to close imminently on August 6, 2025. This follows a string of 11 closures already this year, including sites in Hamilton, Birmingham, Corby, Devizes, and others across England, Scotland, and Wales. The high street stalwart has warned that nearly 100 of its 364 UK stores could be at risk when leases expire, amid ongoing cost pressures such as the National Insurance hikes earlier this year. The retailer recently secured £30million in fresh equity investment to bolster its online operations and completed a £100million refinancing deal in 2023. Last year, New Look reported sales of £769million. Poundland Poundland is closing 26 stores in August 2025 as part of a wider restructuring plan following its £1 sale to Gordon Brothers earlier this year. Closing August 1: Newquay Closing 10 August: Ammanford Birmingham Fort Cardiff Valegate Cramlington Leicester Long Eaton Port Glasgow Seaham Shrewsbury Tunbridge Wells Closing August 17: Bedford Bidston Moss Broxburn Craigavon Dartmouth East Dulwich Falmouth Hull St Andrews Newtonabbey Perth Poole Sunderland Stafford Thornaby Worcester In addition, the Whiteley store in Fareham closed unexpectedly on July 21 2025, outside the announced closures. Whitby will close on September 3. Poundland is trimming its estate from nearly 800 stores to between 650 and 700 locations. The company is removing frozen foods, ending online sales, and expanding womenswear and seasonal lines. Managing director Barry Williams called the closures regrettable but necessary to secure thousands of jobs and hundreds of stores. River Island River Island is facing serious financial trouble and could run out of money by August 2025 if creditors and landlords do not approve a rescue plan. The chain plans to close 33 stores and seek rent reductions on another 71 to cut costs. Approval from 75% of creditors is needed to unlock an emergency loan from the founding Lewis family. Despite these challenges, River Island stores and its online site remain open as usual. The retailer reported a £33.2million pre-tax loss for 2023, with sales falling 19% in the following year. Several stores have already closed this year, including locations in Corby, Banbury, and Chesterfield. Superdrug Superdrug is set to close two more stores this summer, adding to a string of recent closures. The Grantham branch in Lincolnshire will shut on August 9, followed by the Redruth store in Cornwall closing on August 16. These latest closures follow the shutdown of its Bournemouth store earlier this year. The Original Factory Shop (TOFS) The Original Factory Shop, with 178 stores, continues to close locations amid restructuring. The Caldicot branch in Wales and Kirkham in Lancashire are set to close soon, while the closure date for Blairgowrie in Scotland is still unknown. Since June, TOFS has closed several stores across the UK and launched significant closing down sales. The retailer is undergoing a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) process to renegotiate rents and close loss-making outlets as part of efforts to stabilise the business. 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."
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ether Treasury Company GameSquare Buys CryptoPunk NFT for $5.15M
Digital media company GameSquare (GAME) said it bought Cowboy Ape #5577 of the CryptoPunk non-fungible token (NFT) collection from Robert Leshner for $5.15 million. The Frisco, Texas-based company, which described the purchase a strategic investment, also said it added just over $10 million worth of ether (ETH) to its treasury. Leshner, the founder of Compound Labs, an open-source protocol for algorithmic money markets on Ethereum, received the company's preferred stock in payment CryptoPunks are one of the earliest and among the most influential NFT projects. Created in 2017, they inspired much of the modern crypto art movement and set a precedent for digital ownership on the blockchain. "GameSquare plans to leverage CryptoPunks for marketing activations, community building, and potential licensing opportunities," the company said in a Thursday announcement. The firm's purchase of 2,742.75 ETH takes its total holdings to 12,913.49 ETH, valued at around $48.5 million. A number of companies have unveiled ether treasury strategies in recent months as a means of generating passive yield through ETH staking. Foremost among them is SharpLink Gaming(SBET), now the largest corporate ether holder, with over 360,000 ETH. Firms in the media, entertainment and gaming sectors like SharpLink and GameSquare may see an ether treasury strategy as a means of advancing their Web3 aspirations through investing in the Ethereum ecosystem and thereby gaining exposure to NFTs, decentralized finance (DeFi) and more. GAME shares spiked to $1.44, an intraday gain of nearly 8%, following the announcement, before pulling back. At the time of writing, it was trading 4.8% higher at $1.33. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Scotsman
19-07-2025
- Business
- Scotsman
Waverley's Game store to close as Ashley pulls back from high street
Mike Ashley, pictured, whose Frasers Group has closed a number of Game stores across the UK recently Good news, and not so good news, at Waverley Market this week. Notices have gone up in the windows of GAME that they will be closing in September. This was a surprise to me as the shop always seemed busy and had very knowledgeable staff. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... If what I have heard is true the only stand alone GAME that will be left in Scotland will be in Glasgow, and while the Edinburgh shop located within Sports Direct will remain open, they will continue without any staff dedicated to GAME sales. It is a great shop unit just along from Avalanche and I doubt it will be empty for long once they leave, but I've always felt they were a good fit with what we do along with Anime Republic and Damaged Society. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Unlike record shops, which managed to outlast the threat of downloads and then streaming computer games, shops are now trying to trade in a world were the vast majority of games are downloaded. While they have done well to keep going by selling related merchandise clearly GAME's owners – Mike Ashley's Frasers Group – have decided to not completely throw in the towel but certainly pull back from having a strong high street presence. It is maybe telling that the closure notice does not ask customers to visit the remaining Edinburgh shop but instead suggests they visit the GAME website. In better news the old Body Shop unit in the centre has been transformed into a glittering jewellery shop by the Edinburgh-based business Fairy Made and while I can give no judgement on their wares it is good to see a local business giving it a go in these tough times for most retailers. Due to open very soon they were beaten to the post by a gents barbers opening on Thursday. While not located in a shop unit but in one of the two pop-up spaces opposite the Waverley Bridge entrance, they are I am told not a pop-up business and intend to be there permanently much like the Beauty Boutique and Mobile Plus are in the centre of Waverley Market. Again I have no idea what the demand might be for a barbers like this though I have always said the centre needed a hairdressers shop as well as a shop offering tattoos and piercings, so while this is maybe a scaled down version of what I was thinking, this is not their first venture and they have already been successful in other shopping centres so only time will tell. One thing I always warn potential businesses about when looking to move into the centre is that Waverley Market is not like other shopping centres, and I feel that is an advantage it has so long as the businesses are right for the footfall, which includes a lot of families visiting both from the UK and abroad and couples visiting Edinburgh for a long weekend. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad As I was getting the train home on Thursday a headline in this very paper caught my eye. 'Shock in Edinburgh as sudden closure sees Evans Cycles vanish from Fountainbridge'. It seemed odd as the owners were blaming their landlord who had served notice for them to close. Odd that is until I saw the owners were Mike Ashley's Frasers Group.
Scottish Sun
01-07-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Game is shutting down MORE stores in just weeks with 20% off ‘everything must go' sale
The retailer has shut a number of its locations across the UK in recent monthS GAME OVER Game is shutting down MORE stores in just weeks with 20% off 'everything must go' sale BRITISH retailer GAME has announced the closure of yet another store as it dials back its presence on the highstreet. The retailer's long-standing Chatham store, inside the Pentagon Centre, will shut in September. Advertisement 1 The video game retailer has undergone significant restructuring and downsizinG Credit: Google maps The GAME shop in Victoria Centre, Nottingham, is also set to close its doors next month. Stock in all stores must go, with most items being flogged at 20 per cent off. GAME sells a variety of video games, consoles and pop culture merchandise. Shoppers in the Chatham store can get 20 per cent off all full price toys, board games, LEGO, video games, plushies and gaming accessories like headphones. Advertisement The Chatham branch narrowly avoided closure in 2020 when 40 locations across the UK were axed. The retailer has shut a number of its locations across the UK in recent months. The Frasers Group, which acquired GAME in 2019 as part of a £52million deal, has been converting stores into concessions within Sports Direct and other stores owned by the group. The video game retailer has undergone significant restructuring and downsizing. Advertisement While plans don't indicate that the stores will disappear from the British high street completely many locations are expected to close. GAME, in Festival Place, Basingstoke, will also be holding a 20 per cent off everything closing down sale before shutting up shop for good on August 10. The retailer has given no reason for the abrupt departures from shopping centres in the UK. However, the decline comes amid a significant drop in sales of physical video games, compared to Game's heyday in the early 2000s. Advertisement The Digital Entertainment and Retail Association (ERA) revealed that in 2022, nearly 90 per cent of all video games sold in the UK were digital downloads.
The Irish Sun
01-07-2025
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Game is shutting down MORE stores in just weeks with 20% off ‘everything must go' sale
BRITISH retailer GAME has announced the closure of yet another store as it dials back its presence on the highstreet. The retailer's long-standing Chatham store, inside the Pentagon Centre, will shut in September. 1 The video game retailer has undergone significant restructuring and downsizinG Credit: Google maps The GAME shop in Victoria Centre, Nottingham, is also set to close its doors next month. Stock in all stores must go, with most items being flogged at 20 per cent off. GAME sells a variety of video games, consoles and pop culture merchandise. Shoppers in the Chatham store can get 20 per cent off all full price toys, board games, LEGO, video games, plushies and gaming accessories like headphones. READ MORE ON TECH CLOSURES The Chatham branch narrowly avoided closure in 2020 when 40 locations across the UK were axed. The retailer has shut a number of its locations across the UK in recent months. The Frasers Group , which acquired GAME in 2019 as part of a £52million deal , has been converting stores into concessions within Sports Direct and other stores owned by the group. The video game retailer has undergone significant restructuring and downsizing. Most read in Tech While plans don't indicate that the stores will disappear from the British high street completely many locations are expected to close. GAME, in Festival Place, Basingstoke, will also be holding a 20 per cent off everything closing down sale before shutting up shop for good on August 10. The retailer has given no reason for the abrupt departures from shopping centres in the UK. However, the decline comes amid a significant drop in sales of physical video games, compared to Game's heyday in the early 2000s. The Digital Entertainment and Retail Association (ERA) revealed that in 2022, nearly 90 per cent of all video games sold in the UK were digital downloads. Why are retailers closing stores? RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis. High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going. However, additional costs have added further pain to an already struggling sector. The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs from April 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. 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." It comes after almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs in 2024. End-of-year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research showed the number of job losses spiked amid the collapse of major chains such as Homebase and Ted Baker. It said its latest analysis showed that a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost in the 2024 calendar year to date. This was up 49,990 – an increase of 41.9% – compared with 2023. It is the highest annual reading since more than 200,000 jobs were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns. The centre said 38 major retailers went into administration in 2024, including household names such as Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker. Around a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 33% or 55,914 in total, resulted from administrations. Experts have said small high street shops could face a particularly challenging 2025 because of Budget tax and wage changes. Professor Bamfield has 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."
