Key Takeaways

1. Store closures remain a primary lever in 2025 restructurings: with retailers and hospitality groups shrinking physical estates to preserve cash and rebalance cost bases.
2. Brand survival is increasingly decoupled from store survival: With IP, websites, and customer bases frequently rescued while physical locations are lost.

Which High Street Retailers Shut There Doors in 2025?

A significant number of UK retail and hospitality brands closed stores in 2025, reflecting sustained pressure on consumer spending, elevated operating costs, and limited access to flexible funding. Against this backdrop, many operators pursued restructurings, administrations, or orderly wind-downs of underperforming sites.

Poundland

Despite its value-led positioning, Poundland was not immune to reduced footfall and margin pressure. The chain was sold for £1 and entered a wide-ranging restructuring programme. An initial 57 store closures placed more than 1,000 jobs at risk, with further tranches announced subsequently. By early 2026, the estate is expected to reduce from around 800 stores to between 650 and 700.

WH Smith

One of the UK’s longest-standing high street names exited the high street entirely in 2025. WH Smith sold its UK high street stores to Modella Capital as part of a strategic pivot towards travel retail. Around 20 stores closed during the disposal process, with the remaining estate set to be rebranded as TGJones under new ownership.

Claire’s

The UK arm of accessories retailer Claire’s entered administration following the insolvency of its US parent. While a deal led by Modella Capital preserved 156 stores, 145 locations closed, resulting in around 1,000 job losses.

Pizza Hut

Sixty-eight UK dine-in Pizza Hut restaurants closed after DC London Pie, the franchise operator, entered administration. A further 11 delivery sites also shut. The remaining estate was acquired by Yum! Brands in a rescue transaction, saving 64 sites but significantly reducing the brand’s UK footprint.

Bodycare

Beauty and personal care retailer Bodycare ceased trading entirely, closing around 150 stores. Founded in 1970, the business struggled with rising costs, funding shortfalls, and stock availability issues, resulting in the loss of up to 1,000 jobs.

Quiz Clothing

Quiz entered administration in February and closed 23 stores, affecting approximately 200 employees. The brand was acquired via a pre-pack deal by a company linked to the founding Ramzan family, but the physical estate was materially reduced.

Leon

Fast-casual restaurant chain Leon announced the closure of around 20 underperforming sites following a restructuring in December, after being bought back by co-founder John Vincent from Asda. The business is now operating with a smaller estate focused on higher-performing locations.

Read our previous news coverage on Leon restaurants falling into administration.

Select Fashion

Select Fashion entered liquidation after failing to secure a buyer, resulting in the closure of all approximately 80 stores. The womenswear retailer had faced sustained losses and declining demand.

Homebase

Homebase closed 65 stores between January and March after entering administration in late 2024. While the brand was acquired by CDS (owned by The Range founder Chris Dawson), a significant proportion of the estate could not be saved, reflecting ongoing challenges in the DIY sector.

New Look

New Look closed 15 UK stores during the year and exited the Republic of Ireland entirely, shutting 26 sites and impacting 347 roles. The group cited continued pressure on discretionary consumer spending.

Starbucks

Starbucks launched a UK estate review in 2025, resulting in the closure of at least 10 locations. The company did not disclose the full number of sites affected as part of its ongoing optimisation programme.

Fired Earth

Premium tile retailer Fired Earth entered administration in October, leading to the closure of all 20 UK showrooms and 133 redundancies. While Topps Tiles acquired the brand, IP, website, and stock, none of the stores were preserved.
See previous AdministrationList coverage:
https://administrationlist.co.uk/insights/fired-earth-administration

BrewDog

BrewDog closed 10 bars in July, including its original Aberdeen site, as part of a restructuring of its hospitality arm. Almost 100 jobs were put at risk.

Monki

H&M closed all seven UK stores operating under its Monki brand. Some locations were converted to the sister brand Weekday, but several sites exited the market permanently.

River Island

River Island closed 33 stores as part of a formal restructuring plan, securing rent reductions across a further 71 sites to stabilise the business and avoid insolvency.

Hobbycraft

Arts and crafts retailer Hobbycraft announced the closure of nine stores in April, impacting up to 126 employees, following its acquisition by Modella Capital.

Across 2025, the high street has continued to contract not through single high-profile collapses alone, but via cumulative estate reductions, CVAs, administrations, liquidation of smaller operations and restructurings. For business buyers, distressed turnaround investors and landlords, the trend reinforces a shift towards fewer, more productive sites, with brand value increasingly separated from bricks-and-mortar presence.