Latest news with #closures
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Hobbycraft to close NINE shops today as part of huge restructuring plan – is your local going
SHOPPERS are running out of time to pick up craft and art essentials from selected stores as a high street chain axes nine outlets. Hobbycraft is closing shops in towns including Bristol, Dunstable, Borehamwood and Basildon today. 1 The high street favourite is also closing two sites in Essex, one in Gloucestershire, plus another in Kent. The stores closing their doors makeup at least nine Hobbycraft stores that have been earmarked for closure this year. Local customers have been disappointed by the news. Bristol residents describing it as a "shame" on social media. The local store is sure to be missed as another customer said they needed to find another "rainy day activity" referencing the store's numerous crafting goods. Talking about the closure, a Kent-based shopper said: "Oh noooooo it's the only one I go to regularly as the rest are too far away!". Another resident said they would "need therapy" following news of the closure. Closing down sales have been ongoing across the stores, with up to 70% off some items. Here is the full list of stores shutting Canterbury, Kent Basildon, Essex Borehamwood, Hertfordshire Bristol, Imperial Retail Park Dunstable, Bedfordshire Epping Forest, Essex Lakeside Shopping Centre, Essex Cirencester, Gloucestershire Bagshot, Surrey I transformed my boring, old fence using an electric stapler and bargain buys from Hobbycraft and Amazon The closures come as new owner Modella Capital is launching an overhaul of the chain after buying Hobbycraft in August last year. Modella also recently agreed to purchase WHSmith's high street business. The move is set to impact between 72 and 126 jobs. Retail woe Hobbycraft is not the only retailer scaling down operations. Up to 11 Original Factory Shops stores are to set to close this month, including sites across Worcestershire, Durham and Cumbria. And another five stores across Nairn, Market Drayton, Troon, Blairgowrie and Castle Douglas have been put up for sale. Private equity firm Modella bought The Original Factory Shop back in February and has since launched a restructuring effort to renegotiate rents at 88 TOFS stores. You can see the full list of store closures here: The following stores are also up for sale: Nairn Market Drayton Troon Blairgowrie Castle Douglas RETAIL PAIN IN 2025 The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. Research by the British Chambers of Commerce shows that more than half of companies plan to raise prices by early April. A survey of more than 4,800 firms found that 55% expect prices to increase in the next three months, up from 39% in a similar poll conducted in the latter half of 2024. Three-quarters of companies cited the cost of employing people as their primary financial pressure. The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year. It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year. Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: "The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025." Professor Bamfield has also warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector. "By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer's household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020."
RTHK
2 days ago
- Business
- RTHK
'Public may be consulted over prepayment protection'
'Public may be consulted over prepayment protection' Algernon Yau says any legislation regulating prepayments for consumer services must balance the interests of consumers and businesses. File photo: RTHK Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau says the government may soon launch a new public consultation on possible new legislation to regulate prepayments for various consumer services – in the wake of a series of business closures that left many out of pocket. Authorities have received thousands of complaints involving millions of dollars over such closures – with firms such as gym chain Physical Fitness and medical services firm Alliance Medical Group suddenly going out of business over the past year. Speaking in an interview with RTHK, Yau said authorities are eyeing a public consultation sometime this year to explore legislation to better protect consumers. "The Commerce and Economic Development Bureau has recently noticed issues with business closures, and hope to make further consultations over a cooling-off period for advance-payment consumption and collect views from the industry,' he said. 'But no matter what kind of policies we will introduce, we must strike a balance between safeguarding the interests of consumers while taking into account the business difficulties faced by the industry. 'We'll launch an appropriate consultation, and hopefully we can do it in the second half of this year,' he said. The government previously initiated a similar public consultation in 2019, but was later shelved due to protests and the Covid pandemic.
Jordan News
4 days ago
- Business
- Jordan News
Jordan sees 35% surge in new company registrations - Jordan News
Jordan recorded a 35 percent increase in newly registered companies during the first five months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2019 and a 13 percent rise over the same period last year, according to official data from the Companies Control Department. اضافة اعلان A total of 2,980 companies were registered between January and May 2025, up from 2,213 during the same months in 2019 and 2,635 in 2024. The total capital registered during the first five months of this year exceeded JD130 million. Limited liability companies were the most commonly registered business type in 2025, accounting for 2,158 companies, or 72.4 percent of the total, with over JD48 million in registered capital. The data also showed a dramatic decline in company closures. Just 478 companies were dissolved or deregistered during the period, marking an 84 percent drop compared to 2019 and a 46 percent decrease from last year, when 2,390 and 878 companies, respectively, were struck off. There was also a significant uptick in capital increases, with a net capital gain of JD727 million recorded between January and May 2025. This represents a 1,133 percent increase over the same period in 2019 and a 293 percent increase over 2024, when net capital increases stood at JD85 million and JD229 million, respectively. The number of companies that reduced their capital fell to 127 this year, down from 243 in 2019. Meanwhile, 750 companies increased their capital in the first five months of 2025, more than double the 288 recorded during the same period in 2019.
Mint
5 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Air India Boeing 787 planes did not reveal any major safety concern, says DGCA after surveillance
Directorate General of Civil Aviation on Tuesday said that the aviation regulator reviewed the operations of Air India and Air India Express following the recent plane crash, and added that the recent surveillance of airline's Boeing 787 planes did not reveal any major safety concern. 'Air India B787 aircraft, associated maintenance systems found to be compliant with existing safety standards,' said DGCA. However, the aviation watchdog said that it has raised concerns over recent maintenance-related issues at Air India and directs airline to boost inter-department coordination. DGCA stated that Air India has cancelled 66 flights to be operated with Boeing 787 between June 12 and June 17 after the Ahmedabad tragedy. — The airline has been advised to strengthen internal coordination across engineering, operations, ground handling units and ensure availability of adequate spares to mitigate passenger delays resulting from such issues and strictly adhere to regulations. — Air India and Air India Express have been asked to ensure timely communication with passengers and crew and adopt alternate routing strategies to minimize disruptions. The impact of recent airspace closures, particularly over Iranian airspace, was reviewed. — The regulator recommended the implementation of a more systematic and real-time defect reporting mechanism to ensure that operational and safety-critical departments receive timely updates. This is expected to enhance overall decision-making and reduce downstream disruptions. The operators were reminded of their obligations under the relevant Civil Aviation Requirements Section 3 Series M Part IV & V, to inform passengers well in advance regarding delays and cancellations. Emphasis was placed on effective passenger facilitation and timely dissemination of information through all available channels. The recent surveillance conducted on Air India's Boeing 787 fleet did not reveal any major safety concerns. The aircraft and associated maintenance systems were found to be compliant with existing safety standards. The 'Enhances Safety Inspection' mandated under Order Para 1 is applicable to the entire Air India B787-8/9 fleet, comprising 33 aircraft. Of these, 4 aircraft are currently undergoing major checks at various MRO facilities. As of 1500 hrs on 17 June 2025, a total of 24 aircraft have successfully completed the required check. An additional 2 aircraft are planned for completion today, with 1 more scheduled for tomorrow. The remaining 6 aircraft include 2 aircraft, which are presently AOG at Delhi. The checks on these two will be carried out post-declaration of serviceability and prior to their return to service. The remaining 4 aircraft currently under MRO will undergo the mandated check prior to their release from the respective maintenance hangars. DGCA also reviewed recent operational data for Air India's wide-body operations, with specific attention to the Boeing 787 fleet.
The Sun
6 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Award-winning family-run fish and chip shop suddenly closes two branches over ‘rising costs'
FANS have been left devastated after a famous fish and chip shop has shut two of its premises' doors after 60 years. The adored family-run chippy Gormans shuttered its locations on Redburn Road in Westerhope and Denton Road in Newcastle due to "rising costs". 1 "We are closed. Due to the ever increasing costs of energy, stock and wages, we are sad to announce that we have been forced to close," signs on the shops' windows read. "Thank you to all our customers for your support over the years." Diners flocked to social media to mourn the closures. One wrote: "Used to be the best chippy in the area, queues every time. "What a shame." A second weighed in: "We've had our fish and chips from there for years." It is not yet known if other Gormans chip shops have been forced to close. Gormans was set up in the early 1960s by husband and wife Douglas and Evelyn Gorman. WHAT IS HAPPENING TO HOSPITALITY? Many food and drink chains have been struggling recently as the cost of living has led to fewer people spending on eating out. Businesses had been struggling to bounce back after the pandemic, only to be hit with soaring energy bills and inflation. Multiple chains have been affected, resulting in big-name brands like Wetherspoons and Frankie & Benny's closing branches. Some chains have not survived, Byron Burger fell into administration last year, with owners saying it would result in the loss of over 200 jobs. Pizza giant, Papa Johns announced it would be shutting down 43 of its stores this year. Tasty, the owner of Wildwood, also shut sites as part of major restructuring plans. This year has seen the announcing of further closures including from casual dining group Chipotle and an award-winning independent bistro in Merseyside. A wave of other closures has rocked the high street, with even high end restaurants feeling the pinch. The glamorous French restaurant La Dame de Pic closed for good earlier this year, with Kora by Tom Kitchen also putting the shutters down. Some chains have blamed Rachel Reeves' decision to raise National Insurance contributions, though the Chancellor has insisted that her actions were necessary to stabilise the economy. Other restaurants, like La Goccia in Covent Garden, said that 'covid' and 'Brexit' has made it impossible to hire qualified staff - forcing them to close.
