The pharmacy giant has provided a significant update on its store closure plans, following an earlier announcement that 300 shops would permanently close.
Last year Boots declared its intention to shut hundreds of branches in a bid to significantly reduce its store count across the UK.
Now just 10 sites that were previously earmarked for closure remain open and are expected to lock their doors for the last time in the coming weeks.
A staggering 33 branches have shuttered since July this year, the effect of which has been positive for business, but not so much for customers affected by local closures.
Boots revealed that sales increased in the last quarter for the UK arm of the US parent company, The Walgreen Boots Alliance.
Since 2023, Boots has shut around 290 shops to reduce its store estate from around 2,200 down to 1,900 sites. According to The Sun, the 10 remaining stores are expected to shut by the end of October.
While Boots has never published a full list of which shops will be closing under the plans, the majority of the affected sites shut after their store lease expired.
Despite local unrest over the closures by pharmacy users, Boots has defended the move. It claimed that most closures were targeted to areas with another store nearby, within a three-mile radius.
Commenting on the closures in June last year, Boots’ owner Walgreens Boots Alliance said: “Evolving the store estate in this way allows Boots to concentrate its team members where they are needed and focus investment more acutely in individual stores with the ambition of consistently delivering an excellent and reliable service in a fresh and up to date environment.”
This latest update follows new data obtained by Healthwatch revealing that 436 pharmacies closed permanently in England between January 1 and December 31, 2023.
It’s not just the UK branch of the Boots business that’s faced closures. Challenging market conditions, as highlighted by Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Tim Wentworth, revealed pressures on the US arm of the WBA.
Previously sharing plans to close some US branches, the CEO said: “We continue to face a difficult operating environment, including persistent pressures on the US consumer and the impact of recent marketplace dynamics, which have eroded pharmacy margins.”
He added: “Informed by our strategic review, we are focused on improving our core business: retail pharmacy, which is central to the future of healthcare. We are addressing critical issues with urgency and working to unlock opportunities for growth.”
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