Major charity retailer with dozens of stores to shut branch in DAYS following Government tax raid

A MAJOR charity retailer with dozens of branches is shutting a store in days following a Government tax raid.

The “low profit-making” shop will shut on April 12 with workers being offered roles elsewhere in the .

St Peter's Hospice said it is closing the location in Lodge Causeway, , “largely due to the significant increases in National Living Wage and National Insurance“.

The National Living Wage rose to £12.21 on April 1 with employer contributions (NICs) rising tomorrow, piling pressure on retailers.

It is understood the closure is not part of a wider set of closures across the ‘s store estate.

John Broomhead, retail director for St Peter's Hospice, said: “We understand that there is a lot of worry and disappointment around our decision to close the Lodge Causeway store.

“This decision was not taken lightly. Unfortunately, the store has become a low profit-making shop.”

He added: “Our volunteers at this store have also been notified and we thank them for their service and hope they’ll be open to supporting us in one of our other stores.

“As a charity we need to ensure that our retail stores are operating at a profit, so that we continue to raise as much as possible for patient care.”

The next nearest St Peter's Hospice branches from Lodge Causeway are in Kingswood and Fishponds, both on the outskirts of Bristol.

In any case, shoppers have been left devastated after finding out the store will shut permanently in a matter of days.

Posting on , one said: “Sad ..it will be missed.”

Another commented: “What a pity!!”

Meanwhile, a third simply said: “No way.”

St Peter's Hospice raises money for people suffering from progressive and life-limiting illnesses.

Around 20% of its services are funded by the NHS while the rest is raised through its charity shops and events.

The charity currently operates 45 retail stores in and around Bristol.

OTHER CHARITY STORE CLOSURES

The high street has struggled in recent years as the trend towards online shopping continues.

Higher in recent years has dented wallets and purses, meaning consumers have less disposable cash too.

Meanwhile, the number of banks, chemists and on the high street continues to decline, down overall footfall.

Higher and wage have also stunted independent and larger retailers.

Scope , with a further 31 earmarked to shut between April this year and March 2026.

The charity, which has shops in and , .

Bosses said the chain had struggled with declining footfall and spiralling costs, including higher , and staff costs.

Chief executive Mark Hodgkinson said at the time: “As a result, and to ensure our funds are best focused upon our charitable purpose, we have let our teams know that we will be putting forward proposals to close some of our shops, in stages, over the next 18 months.”

The Centre for Retail Research is warning the upcoming hike to employer NICs and the rise in the national minimum wage will lead to around 17,350 shops closing in 2025.

It said more than 13,000 shut for good in 2024, with over 11,000 of these independents.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing [email protected].

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories