Retail park’s store farewell
Debenhams unit closes in town
THE final closing date of Debenhams stores in Carmarthenshire has been revealed.
The department store giant collapsed last year but had reopened 97 of its sites this month to allow for a final closing down sale with up to 80% off fashion and home products.
Debenhams will start to close permanently from May 2, with the stock clearance completed and final stores expected to close by May 15.
It has now confirmed the closing dates for 27 of its remaining branches in Wales and England.
Carmarthen’s St Catherine’s Walk store and Llanelli’s Parc Trostre Retail Park stores will be among the first wave of closures on May 2.
Debenhams will operate online-only when stores permanently close their doors after being bought by Boohoo in January this year in a deal worth £55million.
Bosses at St Catherine’s Walk and Carmarthen Chamber of Trade and Commerce were asked to comment but have not done so. Parc Trostre Retail Park bosses declined to comment on the imminent closure.
Llanelli Chamber of Trade and Commerce was hopeful a new retailer would fill the Debenhams unit sooner rather than later.
Barry Kirby, vice-president of Llanelli Chamber of Trade and Commerce, said last week: “Debenhams leaving Trostre will leave a bit of a gap, but we have every confidence that the location and footfall is such that we do not anticipate the unit being empty for too long.”
For Carmarthen, the question has been asked for the past few months as to just what can fill the space that was the largest floor space at St Catherine’s Walk and its flagship store.
Town mayor Cllr Gareth John remains hopeful for the future of the unit, stating recently: “I am confident something will be done there but of course it’s a tragedy to see Debenhams close after more than a decade in town.
“However, we must remember it was on the cards well before the Covid-19 pandemic.
“All the pandemic has done is speed up the process and brought us to where we are now.”
While the fate of the Debenhams sites in both towns remains unclear for now, Llanelli and Carmarthen are into the third week of shops being back open after lockdown.
This week also sees the hospitality trade open outdoors to customers.
Pubs and restaurants in
Wales have been given the green light to serve customers outdoors from Monday this week.
A decision when to reopen pubs indoors will be confirmed in the coming weeks but is expected to be on Monday, May 17.
From this week people can also start meeting in groups of six outdoors from any number of households, not including children under 11 years of age or carers. Wedding receptions with up to 30 guests can take place outdoors and organised outdoor activities for up to 30 people can also go ahead.
Debenhams leaving Trostre will leave a bit of a gap, but we have every confidence that the location and footfall is such that we do not anticipate the unit being empty for too long Barry Kirby, vice-president of Llanelli Chamber of Trade and Commerce