Iceland closing four more stores - taking number of shops shut this year to 18

17 August 2023 , 13:50

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More Iceland stores will close in September (Image: Gazette)

Iceland has shut a string of stores this year and four more have been flagged for closure next month.

The first store to shut its doors for good is the chain's supermarket at the Bridge Centre, Fratton in Portsmouth on Saturday, August 26. Shoppers were made aware of the closure after signs up put up in the store reading "Sorry! This store is permanently closing from 4pm on Saturday 26th August". The store was originally meant to close in October, however, plans seem to have been brought forward.

Following this, the doors at its Llanelli store in Wales will be shutting on Saturday, September 2 at 5pm. The town centre branch is one of two Iceland stores in the area with shoppers still able to visit the chain's larger out-of-town Food Warehouse at Llanelli's Parc Pemberton Retail Park.

Councillor David Darkin, who is president of Llanelli Chamber of Trade and Commerce said the closure was "sad news" for the area but does present a "great opportunity for the town". After this, the popular frozen supermarket chain's town centre store in Crewe will be closing on Saturday, September 16.

The closure of the Market Shopping Centre site was announced in June and according to a report by Crewe Nub News around 22 jobs will be affected. On the same day, the frozen food retailer will close its Birkenhead store in the Wirral.

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The shop, on Grange Road, next to Pyramids Shopping Centre, will shut its doors for good after it finishes trading at 6pm. There are two other Iceland stores as well as a Food Warehouse site located nearby in Birkenhead so shoppers won't have too far to go after the closure.

These are the stores we understand to be closing, on these dates - if we are incorrect, let us know.

It is uncertain at this time how many Iceland staff overall will be affected by this round of closures. In a statement about the closures, an Iceland spokesperson previously told The Mirror: "Across Iceland and The Food Warehouse we have a portfolio of over UK 1,000 stores, and our retail estate has grown by nearly 200 stores over the last ten years.

"We typically open more than 20 new stores each year, creating many new jobs and contributing to the growth of local economies. At the same time, we continually review the retail experience offered to our customers and have always made a small number of store closures every year, as local shopping patterns change and shop leases expire. The business is currently trading very strongly, achieving record market shares."

Iceland has more than 800 branches and 153 Food Warehouse stores across the UK, and last year opened 24 new branches. Overall, Iceland has closed 17 branches this year. The Mirror has contacted Iceland for comment on the closures.