BOOTS has announced the closures of more stores after it announced its plans to close 300 branches over the next year.
The pharmacy giant has revealed the locations of 11 stores that face the chop forever.
Boots is set to shut over 300 stores for good over the next 12 monthsGetty
The closures are part of wider plans that will see the retailer’s total shops reduced from 2,200 to 1,900.
Boots had not confirmed which stores were set to shut when the plans were announced back in June.
In July, the health and beauty retailer exclusively revealed to The Sun which nine branches would be the first to pull their shutters down this year.
But another two Boots branches have been added to the chain’s closure list, according to local news reports.
The Boots pharmacy at Jardine Crescent in Tile Hill, Coventry will close for good later this year, according to Coventry Live.
Taiwo Owatemi, who represents Coventry North West, said she was “disappointed and concerned” and has since started a petition to save the Jardine Crescent brand.
Boots has also said that it will close its branch on Front Street in Prudhoe, according to The Hexham Courant.
Prudhoe councillor Gordon Stewart said: “Following the announcement by Boots earlier this year that they intend to close approximately 300 stores around the country, the news is that one of the two Prudhoe Front Street stores is to close.”
We’ve asked Boots when it expects to close these two branches for good.
Boots has already confirmed the closures of another six stores by the end of the year in:
Holywell, Flintshire (Wales) – August 26Windhill Road, Wakefield – October 6Upper Warrengate, Wakefield – October 7Glastonbury – October 13Guildford Road, Woking – end of OctoberGorleston, Great Yarmouth – November
A spokesperson for Boots said: “We can confirm that the stores listed are part of the Boots store consolidation programme previously announced.
“All team members from these stores will be offered alternative roles.”
The pharmacy has already shut seven of its branches in 2023 in the following locations:
Salford Shopping Centre, Greater ManchesterChurch Street, MalvernThe Port Arcades Shopping Centre, EllesmereKing William Street, LondonHeathside Road, WokingUEA campusHamlet Court Road, Westcliff-on-Sea
Boots said in all cases there is an alternative store less than three miles away.
Affected team members have been offered opportunities in other stores in the local area.
Boots last closed more than 200 stores over 18 months in 2019.
This saw roughly eight per cent of Boots high street branches close.
Many of the stores shut because they were loss-making and two-thirds of them were within walking distance of each other.
In 2020, Boots announced 48 opticians were closing with the loss of 4,000 jobs.