The High Street is Doomed

The British High Street Is Under Siege—And We Must Act Now

Over the past 12 months, the British High Street has suffered a staggering blow. According to the Centre for Retail Research, over 13,000 stores closed in 2024, and projections for 2025 suggest that number could climb to 17,350 closures, with more than 14,500 of those affecting independent retailers¹. This isn’t just a retail crisis—it’s a cultural and economic unravelling.

Major chains like Ted Baker, Select Fashion, and Claire’s Accessories have entered administration or shuttered dozens of locations². Even stalwarts like WHSmith are pivoting away from traditional storefronts, focusing instead on travel hubs and online expansion¹. The reasons are manifold: rising energy costs, inflation, punitive business rates, and the relentless march of online competition².

But behind every closed shopfront is a story of lost livelihoods, fractured communities, and fading local identity. The high street is more than a place to shop—it’s a social artery, a space where small businesses breathe life into towns and cities.

The Call to Action

It is time to support British companies—not just out of nostalgia, but out of necessity. UK and European jobs depend on it. The small businessman, often overlooked, is the one who will pull Europe out of this economic malaise. They are the innovators, the risk-takers, the ones who will create new businesses and discover new markets.

We must rally behind them with policy, patronage, and pride. That means:

• Reforming business rates to level the playing field

• Investing in local enterprise zones

• Encouraging community ownership and co-operative retail models

• Prioritizing British-made goods and services

A New Direction

Europe’s economic recovery won’t be led by conglomerates—it will be handcrafted by the butcher, the baker, the bookseller. These are the people who understand their communities, who adapt with agility, and who carry the cultural memory of our towns in every transaction.

Let’s not mourn the high street. Let’s rebuild it.

References (2)

1Full list of stores closing across country as UK high street in 'crisis'. https://uk.news.yahoo.com/full-list-stores-closing-across-105439859.html

213 shops we all loved that have disappeared from the high street. https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/life/2109141/most-loved-high-street-store-closures-photos