Shoppers have been left gutted after H&M announced it was closing its store in County Durham.
Signs were put up in the window of the store in Prince Bishops Shopping Centre, in Durham city centre, which said: "Thank you for shopping with us Durham. This store closes on 24th July. Find anything you need in our nearby Sunderland store." And in a statement, H&M confirmed their Durham store would be closing saying "decisions must be made to enable long-term growth".
H&M also noted that there has been a "rapid change" in customer behaviour that they "cannot ignore". In a statement, H&M said they need to adapt to the changing behaviours and be "where their customers are" but stressed the physical store is still "extremely important" to them.
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A spokesperson for H&M said: "During the last few years, we have seen a rapid change in customer behaviour that we cannot ignore. We continuously need to evaluate and develop our business to meet our customers’ needs and offer the best possible shopping experience, whether it’s online or in our physical stores. Our ambition is to continue investing in our customers, open new stores where we see opportunities, and develop our digital channels.
"We continuously evaluate how we should invest in stores and sometimes decisions must be made to enable long-term growth. This means that we sometimes need to close stores. This decision has now been made for our Durham store.
"Customer behaviour is constantly changing, and we need to adapt accordingly. We want to be where our customers are. The physical store is still extremely important to us and will be a place for customers to shop, discover and be inspired. At H&M, we are constantly working to integrate physical and digital stores, we want to find the strength in each channel and make the customer journey smooth, says a spokesperson at H&M UK & Ireland. Our customers can continue to shop in the nearby stores, and as always on hm.com. We have no further comment to make."
Many shoppers took to social media to share their disappointment at the store closing. One customer said: "Another nail in the coffin they call Durham city," while another said: "I've loved strolling into town on a Sunday and having a mooch in the store. I'll miss the staff and our holiday chats. Best of luck to the team in their next adventures."
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