Big fashion chain with 41 stores owned by H&M to permanently shut city-centre branch

A BIG fashion chain with 41 stores worldwide has announced plans to shutter a city centre branch in a matter of weeks.

H&M-owned Arket, which is known for modern and minimal clothing, has confirmed it will pull the plug on its site in the Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham.

The store will close on April 6, giving shoppers a few weeks to say their goodbyes.

Upset shoppers have taken to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their heartbreak.

One fan said: “Oh no Arket in Bullring closing down.”

While a second said: “Arket are going which is a shame, Birmingham was the only other store outside of the capital.”

It draws a line under a six year stint at one of the biggest shopping centres in the UK.

The brand took a 13,000 sq ft space at the mall back in November 2018.

The brand, which charges £17 for a white t-shirt, has closed a number of stores across the UK, including a branch Liverpool One that shut in 2023.

It also had a branch in both Westfield Stratford and White City, which have also closed.

Today, it has three stores located in London, with plans to open a fourth on the posh King's Road in Chelsea this year.

Arket first came on the scene in 2017 as a new brand launched by high street giant H&M.

The news of its West-Midlands departure comes just weeks after H&M said it would close another one of its labels located in the Bullring.

Monki closed down its store in Birmingham shopping centre on March 9.

The brand is known for its colourful designs and is a popular place for trend-conscious Gen Z shoppers looking to buy low-rise and baggy jeans.

But the store has vanished as H&M continues with plans to integrate the brand with another one of its fashion lines, Weekday.

Its branches across Manchester and Newcastle closed in January.

The remaining stores in London, Bristol, and Sheffield will also close this year or be transformed.

It has a total of 41 stores across Europe, China and Korea.

The Monki brand will remain and will be sold on weekday.com and in Weekday multi-brand stores this year.

A previous statement from H&M read: “A limited number of Monki stores are intended to be transformed into multi-brand Weekday destinations, while the others are intended to be closed.”

“The newly formed Weekday multi-brand destination will cater to customers’ high aesthetic standards while embracing their multitude of unique expressions.”

H&M, like many of its competitors, is battling a tricky retail environment.

The fashion giant has also faced increased competition from Zara owner Inditex, which has been dominating the high street in recent years and collaborating with celebs such as Kate Moss.

TROUBLE ON THE HIGH STREET

Plenty of other retailers are closing stores across the high street as households lean more towards online shopping and amid high business rates.

Soaring inflation in recent years has also dented shoppers' pockets.

The Centre for Retail Research's latest analysis suggests 13,479 stores, the equivalent of 37 each day, shut for good in 2024.

Of those, 11,341 were independent shops while 2,138 were shut by larger retailers.

The data also showed over half the stores that closed last year were shut due to the store or retailer going through insolvency proceedings.

This is when formal measures are taken to deal with tackling a business‘s debt.

Retailers are also shutting stores in 2025.

New Look is ramping up a store closure programme ahead of April's National Insurance hike.

Approximately a quarter of the retailer's 364 stores are at risk when their leases expire.

This equates to about 91 stores, with a significant impact on its 8,000-strong workforce.

The company has restructured its store estate twice in the past six years, reducing its portfolio from around 600 UK stores in 2018.

It also closed all of its 26 stores across Ireland, marking the end of a two decade tenure in the country.