M&S has moved to calm fears that one of its flagship stores in the heart of a Welsh town is under threat from closure.
Doubts have been raised in recent days about the future of the food and retail giant’s Carmarthen branch - one of the busiest shops in Carmarthenshire - after reports that a number of the company’s UK branches were to be sold off.
Fortress - a US investment company - is planning to sell 17 M&S stores across the UK in a deal worth £70m.
Read more: Carmarthen's empty Debenhams store to become health and learning hub
Fortress invested £450m to acquire 76 M&S stores from property company Topland Group six years ago. However, according to reports, real estate companies have now been instructed to seek buyers for 17 of the sites.
Four of those have already closed, but 13 remain open, and it’s understood that Carmarthen is one of those affected. Fashion magazine Drapers has published a list of those affected by the plans and, as well as Carmarthen, it includes a number of stores in England and Scotland, but no others in Wales.
The M&S store in Carmarthen sits in the centre of the town and has been a huge draw for both local customers and visitors for four decades. It is one of the largest stores in Carmarthen, taking up two floors with both food and clothing sections and a café.
If the store were to close it would represent a hammer blow to Carmarthen town centre, which has already witnessed a tumultuous two years which has seen the closure of high street chains including Debenhams, Topman, Topshop, Miss Selfridge, Accessorize, H&M, River Island, and Fat Face.
Some of those stores shut even before the coronavirus pandemic broke out in the early months of 2020, but various lockdowns have clearly had a big impact on town centre businesses. Read about how independent traders are hoping to keep the town alive here.
M&S has, however, moved to allay fears that its Carmarthen store is in imminent danger of closing. The company has told Wales Online that, although Fortress is the current landlord, the ongoing speculation about it seeking a buyer for a number of sites does not affect the shop’s right to trade.
The company has insisted that, should there be a new owner, the lease would transfer over and the shop would remain open.
When asked about the prospect of M&S joining a host of other big names to leave the town’s high street in recent times, Carmarthen town and Carmarthenshire county councillor Alun Lenny said that such a move would “tear the heart out of our town”.
“M&S has been our town’s flagship store since about 1980," said Mr Lenny. "Its opening, as part of the Red Street development, firmly established Carmarthen’s status as a major regional shopping centre.
“By attracting shoppers from a wide area, it benefited the many independent traders in Carmarthen by generating increased footfall – and still does, I’m sure. It’s also been an important employer for the past 40 years or so.
“Losing M&S would tear the heart out of the commercial centre of our town. At a time when major stores like Debenhams and Top Shop have either gone bust or downsized by closing a number of outlets, it’s a great relief that M&S’ future looks as safe as any can be at this turbulent time for the retail industry."
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M&S announced last year that it planned to close a number of its stores across the UK after the company reported a loss of more than £200m.
In a trading statement posted in May, 2021, the company said: “M&S had 254 full line stores at year end. While practically all Clothing & Home departments in these stores contribute positive cash, a number are in long term decline, struggle to cover their allocated central costs as a percentage of sales and cannot justify future investment.”
Meanwhile, M&S’s chief executive, Steve Rowe, said: “In a year like no other we have delivered a resilient trading performance, thanks in no small part to the extraordinary efforts of our colleagues. With the right team in place to accelerate change in the trading businesses and build a trajectory for future growth, we now have a clear line of sight on the path to make M&S special again. The transformation has moved to the next phase."
Fortress has not responded to requests to comment on the speculation.
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