CLOSING TIME
Boutique clothing store to shut its doors after just five months in blow for highstreet
Local shoppers have been left devastated by the news
A BOUTIQUE women's clothing shop has announced the "tough decision" to shut its doors after only five months.
The pre-loved clothing store, The Closet at Harker, is set to shut its doors just after Christmas.
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The Carlisle boutique has struggled despite its attempt to fill in a gap in the market, selling a unique blend of preloved, new, and "nearly new" high-brand ladies' clothing.
Owners Debbie Armstrong and Kath Paterson confirmed the closure in a heartfelt statement on social media.
The post read: "We have made the tough decision to close our lovely little shop.
"We have given it a go for five months, which may not seem long, but when we're not making enough money to pay rent, never mind pay ourselves some money.
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"There comes a time when you have to realise that it's just not going to work."
With the shop remaining open until Christmas, significant discounts will be available on many items.
Customers are encouraged to follow updates on Facebook or call the store ahead to confirm opening times.
The owners also request that anyone with items left to be sold should visit the store before Christmas.
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Debbie and Kath expressed thanks to everyone who has visited the store during its journey.
They said: "We'd like to say a big thank you to everyone who has supported us in any way since we opened our doors, it's been very much appreciated."
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Heartbroken locals left their apologies on the page.
One said: Aw sorry debbie. It was a lovely shop and you worked so hard. Xxxxx"
Another added: "Sorry your closing, visited a couple of times, all beautifully displayed,such a beautiful little shop."
Why are retailers closing 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 in a retail park 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.
What is happening to the British high street?
The news comes amid a challenging time for the whole of the UK’s retail sector.
High inflation coupled with a squeeze on consumers' finances has meant people have less money to spend in the shops.
Also the rising popularity in online shopping has meant people are favouring digital ordering over visiting a physical store.
High street shoppers have been left heartbroken after a beloved homeware store announced it will close next week.
The store has been open in Wakefield for over 60 years and has already launched a closing down sale as part of its final days ahead.
Big chains have also been affected.
Dobbies set to shut 16 of its branches has said that they will close before Christmas.
The garden centre chain first revealed that it was shutting sites last month but did not say exactly when they would close their doors for the final time.
The chain, which has 77 sites across the UK, launched the restructuring plan to address "historically uneconomical rent costs".
A trendy fashion chain owned by H&M will close all of its stores in a shock move for the high street.
Monki has seven stores in the UK, including a site on London's Carnaby Street and Manchester's Arndale Centre.
That's because H&M has plans to either shut down Monki stores or merge them with another one of its fashion brands, Weekday.
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The Scandinavian retail giant wants to blend the two brands together to make a one-stop shop that appeals to young shoppers.
Elsewhere, card retailer Clintons is set to close another store and have launched a huge closing-down sale.
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