‘What a shame’ cry shoppers as high street clothing chain with 70 stores abruptly shuts ‘lovely’ branch
DISAPPOINTED shoppers cried “there will be nothing left” after a popular high street chain permanently shut down a beloved branch.
Fans were saddened to see one of their favourite kids’ retailers disappear from East Grinstead town centre, in West Sussex.
JoJo Maman Bebe has around 70 stores cross the country in cities like London, Nottingham and Sheffield.
Customers can enjoy browsing through baby and young kids’ clothing, maternity items and other parent essentials.
But, fans in East Grinstead were heartbroken to hear their store was being shuttered for good this summer.
It waved goodbye to loyal shoppers this month, who have since flocked to social media to vent their sadness.
One Facebook user said: “It’s going to be a ghost town before long.”
Another cried: “Unbelievable – another lovely shop gone!”
A third added: ” Very sad for the staff and town.
“Will be nothing left. No decent shops.”
And a fourth wrote: “What a shame!
A notice left on the store window from staff read: “The time has come to say goodbye. This store has now closed.
“We’d like to thank our incredible team and our many loyal customers who have supported us throughout the years.
“We hope you can continue to visit us at your nearest local stores in St Albans, Berkhamsted and Amersham or shop online at www.jojomamanbebe.co.uk.”
They also wrote a heartfelt poem to all their loyal shoppers, as reported by The Comet.
It read: “To loyal customers of this store.
“We’re sorry, we will be no more.
“We’ve been with you, every day.
“From bump to baby along the way.
“Expectant parents showing us scans.
“Excited grandparents making plans
“All our families big or small
“It’s been a pleasure to serve you all.
“Lots of little girls and boys
“We’ve kitted out with clothes and toys
“We’re really going to miss you all.”
“I have bought lovely clothes for my grandson more than once from this shop and the staff were very helpful.”
But, fans will be pleased to hear the closure is not part of wide-spread action across fellow branches, but a one-off.
JoJo Maman Bebe is also available to order online through its own website and through Next.
The fashion giant took a stake in the baby retailer in early 2022.
But, JoJo Maman Bebe isn’t the only shop that’s been lost from the streets of East Grinstead this year.
Clarks closed its site in the West Sussex town in March, while family-run tailoring business Broadleys is set to close after over 128 years of business.
Plus, Greggs pulled the shutters down on its branch in London Road, East Grinstead in February.
Why are retailers close 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. 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.
Boss Stuart Machin recently said that when it relocated a tired store in Chesterfield to a new big store on a retail park a half a mile away, its sales in the area rose by 103 per cent.
In some cases stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Wilko, Debenhams Topshop, Dorothy Perkins and Paperchase 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.