Iceland shutting two more stores as shoppers say 'this is so sad'

Iceland is set to close two stores starting from next week. The frozen food supermarket is shutting its branch in Margate, Kent, on June 21.

Meanwhile, its store in Inverness, Scotland, will pull down its shutters forever on July 12. Disappointed shoppers have been reacting to the closures on Facebook.

One said: “Another empty shop in ghost town Margate.” Another commented: “Oh no this is such a shame, I love shopping in Iceland.”

A third said: “Nooooo. This so sad. Its a staple for so many people!” A fourth person posted: “Disappointing I like walking into town and picking up few bits.”

Iceland has not confirmed the reasons behind the closure of both sites. The supermarket said it had entered into a consultation process with workers at the affected Iceland stores, and both groups have been offered other roles within the businesses.

Iceland operates over 900 stores across the UK. Iceland has closed a handful of stores over the last few months, including its Welling branch in London, plus shops in Shenley Road, Borehamwood and Alphington Road Retail Park in Exeter.

But it isn't all bad news, as the retailer has also opened new stores. Last month, Iceland opened a new city centre supermarket in Derby and another shop at Victoria Chambers on London Road

Earlier this year, the company announced plans to open 20 Iceland and Food Warehouse stores by the end of April. This came hot off the heels of Iceland opening its new 500,000 square foot £100million distribution centre in Warrington.

The Omega Park Site in Warrington - which opened in partnership with GXO in February - supplies around 350 Iceland stores across the north west of England, the Scottish borders and Wales.

It comes after it was revealed that Poundland has been sold for just £1 and is expected to close around 100 stores as part of a major restructure. The discount chain has been sold to investment firm Gordon Brothers, the former owner of Laura Ashley.

The restructuring plan will go through the High Court with details to be revealed “in due course”. Poundland has already closed more than a dozen stores over the past few months and there are several more branches that are scheduled to close this summer.

Poundland, which is owned by Pepco Group, has around 800 stores in the UK and employs roughly 16,000 employees. As part of the restructuring plan, Pepco will retain a minority stake in Poundland.

Gordon Brothers has also said it is providing up to £80million of financing to help fund the turnaround plan. It comes after Poundland reported revenues dropped by 6.5% to €985million (£830million) for the six months to March.