B&M has announced it will launch 45 new stores across the UK this year — and some of the locations have been revealed.
11 new locations have been officially announced on the B&M website, with more to come.
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The locations are spread all across the UK — from Kent, to Cumbria, to Carlisle.
It comes after B&M announced it would be expanding its reach after successfully opening 45 stores last year.
Bosses said: “The pipeline for next year continues to be robust with 45 gross new store openings expected.”
The full list of store openings is yet to be revealed.
However, the ones announced so far are set to come soon — opening doors throughout April and May.
Here is a list of the 11 locations we do know about:
- Hall Croft, Shepshed, Leicestershire – April 26
- New Rossington, Doncaster, South Yorkshire – May 2
- Eastgate, Louth, Lincolnshire – May 16
- Watling Road, Bishop Auckland, County Durham – May 17
- Bridge Street, Killamarsh, Derbyshire – May 21
- Middlebrook Way, Holt Road, Cromer, Norfolk – May 23
- Linden Park Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent – May 24
- Tweedmouth, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland – May 30
- Wyndham Way Retail Park, Portishead, Somerset – May 30
- The Market Hall, The Eden Centre, Carlisle, Cumbria – May 30
- Wrekin Retail Park, Arleston, Telford, Shropshire – May 31
To keep track of which other stores are opening, keep an eye on the B&M website.
And to find out where your nearest B&M is located, you can use the Store Finder tool on the chain’s website.
Unlike its rivals, B&M has been thriving over the past two years opening a number of new sites.
Some other recent openings include:
- Woodhall Business Park, Eastern Bypass, Sudbury, Suffolk
- Eaton Walk, Rushden, Northamptonshire
- Victoria Shopping Centre, Chartwell Square, Southend-on-Sea
- Crossgates Shopping Centre, Unit 47A, Crossgates, Leeds, West Yorkshire
- 49-53 Market Street, Earlestown, Newton-le-Willows, Merseyside
A number of the the news stores have been bought up since Homebase fell into administration.
The DIY and homeware chain entered into administration in November but was partially rescued by billionaire Chris Dawson, owner of CDS Superstores, the parent company of The Range and Wilko.
Since then, a total of 82 Homebase stores have been regained and repurposed.
This includes 33 new-format superstores that opened within The Range, and 12 additional stores announced for April and May.
Home improvement chains are struggling as shoppers cut back on spending and housing market woes dampen DIY interest.
Why are retailers closing stores?
RETAILERS have been feeling the squeeze since the pandemic, while shoppers are cutting back on spending due to the soaring cost of living crisis.
High energy costs and a move to shopping online after the pandemic are also taking a toll, and many high street shops have struggled to keep going.
However, additional costs have added further pain to an already struggling sector.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs from April will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
At the same time, the minimum wage will rise to £12.21 an hour from April, and the minimum wage for people aged 18-20 will rise to £10 an hour, an increase of £1.40.
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.”
It comes after almost 170,000 retail workers lost their jobs in 2024.
End-of-year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research showed the number of job losses spiked amid the collapse of major chains such as Homebase and Ted Baker.
It said its latest analysis showed that a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost in the 2024 calendar year to date.
This was up 49,990 – an increase of 41.9% – compared with 2023.
It is the highest annual reading since more than 200,000 jobs were lost in 2020 in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced retailers to shut their stores during lockdowns.
The centre said 38 major retailers went into administration in 2024, including household names such as Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker.
Around a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 33% or 55,914 in total, resulted from administrations.
Experts have said small high street shops could face a particularly challenging 2025 because of Budget tax and wage changes.
Professor Bamfield has 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.”
Kingfisher, owner of B&Q and Screwfix, saw annual profits plunge over 25% to £568m.
Everest and Safestyle, both windows and doors specialists, collapsed into administration, leaving customers in limbo.
Wickes also reported a 31% drop in profits last year, despite stable revenues.
Tapi rescued the Carpetright brand, saving 300 jobs, but 200 stores were shut down in the process.
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