High Street chain closures slow

Chain stores are closing at their slowest rate for eight years, new research shows. While a total of 11,530 outlets shut across in 2022, representing an average of 32 closures a day, marking an improvement compared with the previous three years according to research by PWC

Comparing openings to closures, 2022 saw 3,627 net closures. This was far below the 10,059 seen in 2021 and the 9,877 recorded in 2020.

The report stated that store openings and closures results are remarkably positive. The slowdown of closures we saw in our first-half results has continued in earnest, and there are plenty of reasons for optimism.

Chain outlet openings are beginning to look more positive. Though they remain below pre-pandemic levels, they are improving: with 7,903 store openings (equivalent to 22 per day) this year, they are at the highest since 2019.

As a result, overall net closures are at the lowest number we’ve seen in over seven years (equivalent to just 10 net closures per day), and less than half the level seen in 2020 and 2021 (33 and 29 per day respectively).

The report said that it is a positive story across every region. In the first six months of 2022, saw the spread between regions narrow. That trend has continued to the extent that regional variations have nearly gone. This year has seen the narrowest spread of results in over seven years (GB average -1.7%), with less than one percentage point between the worst performing (West Midlands at -2.3%) and the best (South East -1.3%). This is a particular turnaround for London, which was particularly hard hit by the pandemic lockdowns. It was -5.8% in both 2020 and 2021, significantly worse than any other region, but just -2.2% in 2022.

Kien Tan, Senior Retail Adviser at PwC said “What we’ve seen in the last year is that high streets are more important than ever as a place where we work shop and play. These figures are testament to that.”