The coronavirus pandemic has hit high streets up and down the country hard, with big name businesses shutting up shop for good, leaving huge dents in the main shopping areas of many different towns and cities.
Swansea is no different, and its city centre has experienced a number of big name casualties as a consequence of the enforced closure of non-essential retail by the Welsh Government. Some major brands that were around for decades disappeared over the course of lockdown, and now, as shoppers return, there are many large, empty units in prominent positions.
We've taken a closer look at the big names that have departed the city centre and the current state of play over their uncertain futures.
Topshop/ Topman
Arcadia Group, which owned Topshop and Topman, went into administration on November 30, 2020, placing 13,000 jobs at risk. In January, 2021, online clothing retailer ASOS purchased the group, but it only wanted the brands, not the shops. It spelt the end for the prime Swansea Oxford Street unit, which had been occupied by the retailer for decades, and it has remained empty since.
Its vacant former home is currently being marketed to let by RK Real Estate. The unit is described as being located on "two of the city's strongest streets for shopper footfall", and adds how the store size and multiple levels will "suit a range of retail and leisure uses including bar, restaurant and competitive socialising." You can learn more about the opportunity by clicking here.
Find out what's going on where you live:
Miss Selfridge and the old What!/BHS stores
The fate of Miss Selfridge mirrored that of Topman and Topshop, as it was also owned by Arcadia. The Oxford Street unit in Swansea was vacant for a short period of time, but retailer What!, which had been located next door at the former home of BHS, has now moved in. The relocation took place after Celebration Assets, which owns What! told Swansea Council it planned to move out and focus its retail efforts on its other Swansea sites, including Miss Selfridge.
The authority now plans to move its main library into the former home of BHS, along with a host of other community services.
Dorothy Perkins and Burton
Two other victims of the Arcadia collapse were Dorothy Perkins and Burton, which were located within the same unit on different floors in the middle of the Swansea Quadrant Shopping Centre. We approached The Quadrant for comment on the future of the unit, but it declined to comment.
Take a walk down memory lane and see how Swansea city centre has changed since the noughties by clicking here. Join the discussion in the comments and tell us what you'd like to see move into the vacant units in the future.
Debenhams
Generations of people in Swansea headed to the Debenhams store in the Quadrant Shopping Centre to find the perfect Christmas or birthday gift, fit themselves out with new clothes, or enjoy a meal or coffee with friends or family in the cafeteria from the moment it first opened in 1978.
That all came to an end in January, 2021, with the long-anticipated announcement that all Debenhams stores would close when the brand was bought by online fashion retailer Boohoo for £55 million. Debenhams will continue as an online-only operation but its store in The Quadrant, which was the anchor unit of the shopping centre, closed in May. It has been the most significant of all the units lost in the city centre, due to its sheer size and the footfall it once attracted.
Quadrant centre manager Lisa Hartley explained in December last year how the unit was owned by a Kuwaiti individual, adding that discussions would be held on its future moving forward. The unit remains empty, however with no indication as to what will be moving in to fill the void. We approached The Quadrant about the future of the unit, but it declined to comment.
Animal
Animal, a surfing-inspired fashion brand, closed its doors after 13 years at The Quadrant on December 6, last year. Owner H Young Holdings had previously revealed the Poole-based business would shut due to an "extremely challenging" retail market. Seven staff members working at the store were all made redundant. Six months later, the unit still remains vacant.
We approached The Quadrant about the future of the unit, but it declined to comment.
What about the future of some other units which closed prior to the pandemic?
Toys R Us
For generations, there was one undisputed go-to destination in Swansea for families to take their young children to pick out a special present for their birthday or Christmas.
Located in Parc Tawe Retail Park, a trip to Toys 'R' Us was always an exciting day out if you were of a certain age, with its aisles filled with a huge variety of toys befitting the trends of different generations, from Star Wars and Thomas The Tank to The Powerpuff Girls, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and S Club 7 dolls.
The home of Jeffrey the giraffe was a key component of the retail park as it was, located in a huge unit next to Carpet Right and UCI cinema, along with the likes of Joe's Ice Cream and Fresh Donuts.
It closed its doors on Sunday, April 22, 2018, after the company entered administration and all its stores shut nationwide. The future of the unit is now secured, however, with the store currently being revamped to create the new home for an Aldi supermarket.
260 Oxford Street
A number of units in Oxford Street have been empty for a significant number of years, including 260 Oxford Street.
There looks to be hope on the horizon however, as Chopstix is looking to open its third Welsh restaurant there, subject to planning permission being granted by Swansea Council. It already has restaurants in Bridgend and Cardiff.
Threadneedle Property Unit Trust, based in London, has asked the authority for planning permission to transform the empty unit from retail use to food and drink, and has named the restaurant as the intended tenant. Documents submitted with the plans read: "A specific operator, Chopstix, intends to operate as a fast service restaurant including the sale of hot food and drink for consumption on and off the premises."
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