The closing shop chains thread...

[rebbonk]

Pizza Hut's business model is quite a complicated one. But, typically, their product markup is a very healthy 600%. I know Arena rents are not cheap, and the enforced lockdown over covid won't have helped, but I'm surprised at this one closing, especially being so close to the CBS Arena and all that goes on there.

[dutchman]

It may be significant that it's a sit-down venue and not just a takeaway?

[dutchman]

Sainsbury's staff worried they will be left out of work with Coventry store set to close



Staff at the Sainsbury's store in Courthouse Green say they are worried about their jobs after it was announced that the store will close its doors. Store workers have said that they have been told that the store will close in February next year and while the company has said that there are opportunities to work at different stores in the area, there is no guarantee that they will still be in a job after its closure.

A member of staff, who works as a delivery driver at the says that he has been told that there are other opportunities to work at the company but that he will have to reapply for his job instead of being transferred. He is concerned that this could leave him out of work in the middle of the cost of living crisis.

Another member of staff, who asked to remain anonymous said: "I hope I can find something else. Just a really s*** time for this to come about with the cost of living.

"Hundreds of people out of work. A lot of people who live local work at the store.

"Myself I live a 10 minute walk away. I’ve only been there a short amount of time, but Sainsburys has been best employer I’ve worked for.

"I really enjoy my job, It’s a decent wage, pension is good, we get full sick pay.

"Staff discount is good. We're also getting a 25p wage rise in October to help with cost of living not long after getting a wage rise in March/April."

A Sainsbury's spokesman said: "We are consulting with our colleagues following the difficult decision to close our Sainsbury’s Court House Green Superstore. We understand this will be an unsettling time for those affected and we are supporting them in every way we can.

"This includes exploring opportunities for alternative roles within Sainsbury’s. We regularly review our property estate and the decision to close a store is never taken lightly and is based on a range of factors.

"Customers can continue to shop with us at our nearby stores including our Coventry Superstore, Canley Superstore and Coventry Far Gosford Street Local." Yesterday, Sky News reported that the supermarket chain, is in advanced talks to sell close to 20 stores to a London real estate investor LXi REIT for about £500m.

[rebbonk]

Sainsbury's are currently looking at selling a number of freehold sites and leasing them back. This would give them an injection of cash. What do they need this cash for? What is just below the horizon?

In my experience, when a company enters sales and leaseback deals, things don't end well!

[dutchman]

Huge store closes in city's New Street in the middle of Birmingham German Christmas Market



One of New Street's oldest and most famous retailers has quit its prime location shop which has always been right at the heart of the Birmingham German Christmas Market. The closure of Boots means the unit is now completely empty just when the giant Frankfurt bar with revolving lights on top is fully up and running just yards from its front door.

Boots was founded by herbalist John Boot in Nottingham in 1849 - making the company two years older than near neighbour Moss Bros (1851), 15 years older than John Lewis (1864), 35 years older than Marks & Spencer (1884) and 60 years older than Selfridges (1909). But it has shut down its 102 New Street beauty and pharmacy store ready to concentrate on its two larger sites in Birmingham city centre with a smaller unit heading towards New Street Station from Stephenson Street.

A note in the window of the New Street site directing customers to 66 High Street B4 7TA or Bullring Level 3 B5 4BE. The closure of New Street - which listed its services as 'pharmacy, beauty, food, baby, photo and electrical' seems to have been so quick that Google still says it is 'Open' and closes at 6pm.

The loss of Boots opposite the bottom end of Bennetts Hill could provide an opportunity for another hospitality business to move in. In recent years the area has become a mini food quarter with Nando's, Tortilla, Extrawurst, Eat4Less, Fat Burgers and KFC all open up close to La Galleria, Wagamama, Second Coffee Cup and Medicine.

On the downside for now, Boots' departure creates nothing more than an empty unit, when two neighbouring shop units have been vacant for years including Coventry Building Society's former site and Circle. Further up New Street on the same side, the three-level former Habitat / Morrisons / My Local store has remained closed since July, 2016. The former Royal British Legion shop is also closed.

Back in September 2015, Andy Street, the then managing director of John Lewis, opened the company's brand new, purpose-built four-floor department store at the Station Street end of Grand Central. He was elected West Midlands Mayor in 2017 and after the first lockdown in 2020 said he was mystified that John Lewis was quitting Grand Central before the store had even reached its fifth birthday.

[dutchman]

Coventry City 'forced' into closures as statement made



Coventry City have been "forced" to temporarily close their official club stores and CCFCstore.com

The Sky Blues confirmed the move in a statement on Wednesday, saying the decision was taken due to circumstances outside of the club's control. They relate to problems with retail partner Elite Sports Group, and are issues that left the Sky Blues with "no other choice".

While announcing the news in a statement, the club said: "We understand supporters will be frustrated by the news, at what is a busy time over the festive period, and this is something we recognise and can only apologise for, but in order to ensure as little disruption as possible, this is a decision we have had to take.

"Recent online orders may have been affected by this and we are currently liaising directly with the fulfilment warehouse to seek clarity on those orders that may be affected.

"Again, we would like to apologise to supporters for the inconvenience this has, or may cause and we will work with Elite to ensure that we get this solved as soon as possible, to prevent any further disruptions."

This is an Elite Sports Group issue which is affecting clubs nationwide and not just a Coventry City issue.

[rebbonk]

Flybe calls it a day

Flybe: Regional carrier ceases trading and cancels all flights

Airline Flybe has cancelled all flights to and from the UK after going into administration.

A statement on the airline's website said it had "ceased trading" and told any passengers expecting to travel with it not to go to the airport.

About 2,500 passengers were due to fly with Flybe on Saturday, with about 75,000 passengers in total having flights cancelled.

Flybe's administrator confirmed 277 of its 321 staff are being made redundant.

Financial advisory firm Interpath said the rest of the company's staff would be retained.

Flybe said it would not be able to help passengers arrange alternative flights.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said it would provide advice and information to those affected.

Administrators have taken over the company, which only relaunched in April last year.

Passenger frustration as airline cancels all flights
Cornwall flights cancellations 'a shock'

In March 2020, it announced it would cease trading, citing the coronavirus pandemic as a contributory factor.

The company was rescued after being bought by Thyme Opco, a firm linked to US hedge fund Cyrus Capital and subsequently renamed Flybe Limited.

The airline resumed operations with a plan to operate up to 530 flights per week across 23 routes.

Until the most recent collapse, Flybe operated flights on 21 routes from Belfast City, Birmingham, and Heathrow to airports across the UK as well as to Amsterdam and Geneva.

A statement published on the Flybe website early on Saturday said the High Court had appointed joint administrators for Flybe Limited.

"Flybe has now ceased trading and all flights from and to the UK operated by Flybe have been cancelled and will not be rescheduled," it read.

"If you are due to fly with Flybe today [Saturday] or in the future, please do not travel to the airport unless you have arranged an alternative flight with another airline."

It added that anyone who had booked a flight with the airline via an intermediary should contact that intermediary directly.

One passenger who was due to take a Flybe service this morning was Chris Donnelly, who was scheduled to fly from Belfast City to Heathrow at 07:25 GMT.

At 03:07 he received an email from Flybe which stated his flight had been cancelled and the company had gone into administration, advising passengers not to travel to the airport.

Mr Donnelly, a school principal and political commentator, was on his way to the airport when he saw the email.

He was able to book an alternative flight from Belfast to Gatwick, but doing so at short notice was inconvenient.

He added that he had booked train tickets from Heathrow into central London costing £50, which were of no use to him now.

Sophie Levy is in the Royal Navy, and flew with Flybe on Friday from Newquay to Heathrow, with a return flight scheduled for Sunday - but since cancelled.

She said she is under pressure to get back to her base at RNAS Culdrose on Sunday for a promotional course.

"I will now be getting a train at short notice that will put me out of pocket," she said.

"My relaxing weekend turned out to be manic."

Freddy McBride, 61, from Balham in south London, was due to fly with his wife from Heathrow to Belfast on Saturday morning but had to rebook with Aer Lingus.

"I got up at six and left the house before seven. I got to Hatton Central and I checked my email and it says they've gone into administration. It's just outrageous," he said.

Matthew Hall, chief executive of Belfast City Airport, which has the highest number of Flybe staff in the UK, with 138 employees, said his thoughts were "with Flybe employees and passengers".

He said anyone booked onto Flybe flights should not travel to the airport, and eight of its 10 Flybe routes were covered by other providers.

'How are they making a profit?'

The airline also flew from Cornwall, with routes from Newquay to London Gatwick and Manchester.

Louis Gardner, economy leader for Cornwall Council, said the news had come as a "real shock" and efforts would be made to find other providers for the routes.

Seamus McCoy, who used Flybe regularly to travel between Newquay and London, told BBC Radio Cornwall: "Every time I've flown, I've always thought: 'How are they making a profit?' because the planes have never been more than 50% full."

CAA consumer director Paul Smith said: "It is always sad to see an airline enter administration and we know that Flybe's decision to stop trading will be distressing for all of its employees and customers.

"For the latest advice, Flybe customers should visit the Civil Aviation Authority's website or our Twitter feed for more information."

The government said its "immediate priority" would be to support anyone trying to get home and Flybe staff who have lost their jobs.

"This remains a challenging environment for airlines, both old and new, as they recover from the pandemic, and we understand the impact this will have on Flybe's passengers and staff," it said.

It said most destinations served by Flybe in the UK were accessible through alternative means of transportation.

The Independent's travel correspondent Simon Calder told BBC Radio 4's Today that while customers should get a refund, finding alternative flights may be a problem: "They are going to be more expensive than the ones they originally bought with Flybe," he said.

He said while there had been a recent surge in demand for air travel, Flybe had "fairly thin pickings" of travel routes when it returned to operation, and had struggled with passenger loads on its flights.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-64436500

I've flown Flybe many times, I always thought they were one of the better regional airlines.

[dutchman]

Tesco buys Paperchase brand but not shops, with 800 jobs at risk



Tesco has bought the brand and intellectual property of Paperchase, after the struggling stationery retailer collapsed into administration.

However, the deal does not include Tesco taking on the brand’s 106 stores across the UK and Ireland, leaving the future uncertain for Paperchase’s 820 employees.

The deal follows a difficult few months for Paperchase after rising costs and disappointing sales.

“Paperchase is a well-loved brand by so many, and we’re proud to bring it to Tesco stores across the UK,” said Jan Marchant, the managing director of home and clothing at Tesco.

Administrators from the insolvency firm Begbies Traynor have been appointed to handle Paperchase’s operations in the short term. They said the company’s stores would remain open and continue to trade as normal.

Paperchase will continue to honour gift cards but the joint administrators are urging customers to redeem them as soon as possible, and within the next two weeks.

[dutchman]

Coventry New Look store permanently shuts after landlord terminates lease



A New Look store in Coventry has permanently shut down after a dispute over the lease agreement for the building. Shoppers were left saddened following the closure of the store at Arena Shopping Park on Sunday (January 29).

New Look said they were forced to shut down after the building owner requested to take the property back and exit the lease agreement early. Inside the building is now mostly empty.

A sign on the window reads: “This store is now closed. But we're never too far away. Visit us in our Coventry City Centre and Nuneaton stores and shop online at newlook.com.”

Colleagues have been left out of work following the sudden closure over the weekend. New Look hopes to find roles for affected employees at other stores in the city.

A spokesman for the clothing retailer said they have loved being a part of the local community and thanked customers for shopping at the store over the years. A new tenant could soon be announced, said a spokesman for Arena Shopping Park.

A company spokesman said: “Regrettably, our New Look store in Coventry's Arena Shopping Park is closing following the landlord's request to take the property back and exit the lease early. We are now focusing on supporting our affected store colleagues and finding suitable alternative roles for them within the business wherever possible.

"We have loved being part of the local community and we would like to thank all of our customers in the local area.”

[dutchman]

Sadness as Sainsbury's closes for final time after over 30 years in Courthouse Green



Staff have been left saddened at the closure of a popular supermarket in Coventry. Sainsbury's in Courthouse Green will shut for the final time today (Friday, February 17).

Employees gathered outside the supermarket to mark the final day. Shelves have been emptied as they prepare for the permanent closure of the store at 8pm.

Shoppers said they were sad to hear of the closure of the supermarket which has served the local community since 1989. A large number said they have shopped at the store for decades and will be "disappointed" to see it close for good.

Karen Proctor, 59, who coincidentally is celebrating 29 years of working at the store today, said that she will be taking an early retirement following the closure. She told CoventryLive: “It is a bit sad. I am going to retire now and do voluntary work for charity, but not yet. I am going to have some time out first.”

Customers shared their disappointment over the closure with many having shopped at the supermarket for years. Kashmir Dhesi, 57, said: “It was a good store for the locals. I have been shopping here since it opened.

“I used to live nearby but I moved to Keresley over 20 years ago and I still come here. It is really convenient for parking as well and the location is really good, near Jimmy Hill Way, so people can get to it quite easily. It is disappointing and I feel sorry for the staff.”

June Smith, 67, said: “I will miss it. It was handy to be here and I feel sorry for the staff. I have lived around here for 40-odd years now and always come here.”

Pat, 75, who lives in Coventry, added: “I am not happy. It is a small shop and not huge like Tesco and Asda, they are great big places and you have to walk from one end to the other to get something.

“Whereas this one, because I have been coming here for years, I know where everything is. The staff are all so friendly here. They all know me, they are like family in a way.

"I get my petrol here as well so now I am going to have to go to the Tesco near the hospital if I want to go and get petrol. I am very disappointed because I have now got to go somewhere else to shop when I have shopped here for 25 years.”