Sadness as huge UK toy chain to close town centre shop in weeks

The UK's biggest store chain is set to very soon, in yet another blow to the British . The Entertainer, which sells toys, puzzles and board games, has hung closing down sale posters in the window of its Barrow-in-Furness shop, which is set to shut for good on May 3.

The closure of the Dalton Road branch comes as the store is "no longer profitable". It is important to note that retailers close stores for a variety of reasons, and it doesn't just mean they are in trouble.

More commonly, stores close because the tenancy has come to an end on the site or because the branch is not as profitable as others - which, of course, is the reason for the Entertainer's closure.

The shop in Barrow-in-Furness replaced the former Argos store back in 2017 and over the years became known for making large donations to local charities. According to reports from the toy shop donated a large number of toys to the children's ward at Furness General Hospital at in the year it opened.

John Edwards was a manager at the store and left in July last year and told NWE Mail: "I'm incredibly sad about this. The Entertainer was a dream job for seven years and in that time we worked so hard to make it a part of the community and an asset to the town centre.

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"It was something I was incredibly passionate about and we worked hard to do it over the years. The company made large donations to local charities, we were actively involved in BID events, brought character visits to the town and put on events.

"It was always important to me it wasn’t just a shop, it had to be an experience and be somewhere kids were excited to go. It’s a huge shame to lose that on Dalton Road. It's sadly another victim of retail parks in the town. I'm sending lots of love to all those working there now."

Keith Stenhouse, Head of Region at The Entertainer, said: "We are sad to be closing our Barrow in Furness store as of 3rd May and would like to thank our customers and staff for their loyalty and support. We’re proud of the service we’ve offered and are committed to supporting our employees through this situation."

“We have over 1,000 locations across the UK, and like most retailers, we occasionally need to look at closing standalone stores that are no longer profitable. Customers can continue to shop our range of great value toys and games online, as well as in selected stores.”

The Entertainer has over 160 stores across the UK and 861 shops in large Tesco outlets. Over the last six months, the toy retailer has closed six high street sites in East Kilbride, Dundee, Birmingham Fort, High Wycombe, Huddersfield, Croydon and Sutton Coldfield.

In December, the Entertainer announced it was closing its site in Luton Point shopping centre on January 25. At the time the retailer said it was "sad to be closing".

Andrew Murphy OBE, group chief executive at The Entertainer, said at the time of the closure: "Like most large national retailers, we continuously assess potential new locations while deciding whether to renew those shops which have reached the end of their lease arrangements."

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