‘Zombie’ stores – whose name and online business have been taken over but whose physical stores remain half-alive while stocks are cleared – could hasten the death of the High Street, warns home delivery expert ParcelHero.
ParcelHero fears that shops such as Debenhams, Burtons and Dorothy Perkins could be revived as soulless versions of their former selves following lockdown.
Over the last few weeks, many of Britain’s former favourite retailers have been snapped up by e-commerce giants Boohoo and ASOS, which have only bought the brand and online businesses. Those physical shops whose stock was not bought as part of the takeovers will be left to wind down, effectively feeding off other High Street shops by undercutting them to clear stocks before their final closures.
ParcelHero’s head of consumer research, David Jinks, warns that more than 560 stores will eventually close as their brands move online only. This is due to ASOS’ purchase of Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and HIIT plus Boohoo’s buyout of Debenhams and potential takeover of Burtons, Dorothy Perkins and Wallis.
‘It’s a horror story for Britain’s High Street,” he said. “The twist at the end of the tale is that some of these stores will come back to life after lockdown ends but their souls will have gone as their futures move online. Instead, these ‘zombie’ stores are likely to undercut local retailers because of the need to clear remaining stocks. This can only further injure other businesses on the High Street…
ONLINE
“Those ‘undead’ town centre stores that do reopen, such as Debenhams, will be staffed by many of the 25,000 workers who know their jobs are going once this wave of closures ends. They are unlikely to be fully focused on customer service. It’s a retail nightmare.
”Even when this wave of closures is over, don’t be lulled into a false sense of security. Other big High Street names are also being snapped up by online-only retailers….
“ParcelHero has been warning about the dangers of a shift to ‘pureplay’ online-only stores for some time. We believe a balanced ‘brick-and-click’ approach will be best for retailers and shoppers alike.
“ParcelHero’s influential report, ‘2030: Death of the High Street’, has been discussed in Parliament. It reveals that, unless retailers develop an omnichannel approach that embraces both online and physical store sales, the High Street as we know it will reach a dead-end by 2030.”
Read the full report at: www.parcelhero.com/blog/news-updates/2030-dead-end-for-the-high-street
