Marks and Spencer have named the date that the company will be closing its branch in Bolton town centre.
The closure of the branch on Deansgate was announced earlier this year, prompting widespread concerns about the state of Bolton’s high street.
The company has now confirmed that the branch will close its doors for the last time on April 15.
A message said: “Thank you to all our Bolton colleagues and customers.
“We hope to see you soon in our nearby M&S stores.”
The planned closure of Marks and Spencer in the town was first announced earlier this year on January 17.
At the time the company cited “changing shopping habits”, while other branches around the country have also been threatened with closure.
M&S regional manager Ben Heaps said: “Shopping habits are changing, so we’re rotating our store estate to make sure we have the right stores to offer customers a brilliant shopping experience.
“As part of this transformation, we have today announced to colleagues our proposal to close our M&S Bolton store at 35 Deansgate.”
He added: “Our priority now is to talk to our colleagues about what this announcement means for them and wherever possible, offer them alternative roles with M&S.”
In all, the company is said to be considering closing around a quarter of its branches all around the country.
M&S has said that it will continue to run branches at the Rock shopping centre in Bury and at Middlebrook Retail Park, which the company hopes will be accessible to customers in Bolton.
ALSO READ: 'Disappointing for some' as town centre Marks & Spencer to shut its doors
ALSO READ: Marks and Spencer closure 'devastating' for staff, customers and high street
ALSO READ: High street name to quit Bolton town centre
The company will also maintain M&S Foodhalls in Prestwich and Walkden.
At the time, Bolton Council expressed “disappointment” at the decision but said that the authority hoped to attract more private investment to the town.
But the end of the Deansgate M&S comes at a challenging time for the rest of the town’s high street as well with Clinton Cards just the latest well-known name to announce it will be leaving. The shop on Market Street will close next month, but no exact date announced.
It emerged in February that Clinton Cards was planning to shut its Bolton branch, with a range of other closures following suit around the country.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel