A MUCH-loved jewellery shop is closing its doors after 34 years in business, leaving locals gutted.
Abacus Beads, located in the heart of Belfast, has announced a major closing-down sale as it prepares to shut up shop.
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The owner announced on Facebook: “It is with a heavy heart I have to tell you we are closing down in a few weeks time.
“I am moving away from Belfast and I had an amazing customer who wanted to buy the business, but sadly the banks were not prepared to help us unless she had a huge chunk of the money herself.
“It stood for nothing that this is a viable business which has been trading successfully for 34 years.”
The owner added that Abacus Beads has launched a 20 percent off closing-down sale.
Read more on shop closures
Locals expressed disappointment over the closure, particularly saddened that another buyer was unable to keep the beloved business going.
One person wrote: “I’m so, so saddened to read this. You’ve worked so hard over the years.
“It’s disgraceful that the bank wouldn’t lend the money to your potential buyer for a quite obviously viable business.”
Another commented: “So sorry to hear this. Heard of so many craft/fabric stores closing recently, Northern Ireland will sorely miss you. Wishing you all the best in the future.”
It comes as G Hewitt & Son jewellers, a popular high street jeweller in Grimsby, Lincolnshire, which served customers for 154 years, announced its closure.
The reason behind the closure is that Jonathan Hewitt, great-grandson of G. Hewitt & Son founder George Hewitt, made the difficult decision to retire.
Hewitt said: “We’ve had an astonishing run, 154 years is not a bad innings, is it?
“We were one of the first Rolex retailers in the UK, with our records showing Rolex sales as early as 1919.
“Fast forward to 2011 and G. Hewitt & Son briefly enjoyed one of the largest Rolex showrooms in the country.
“It’s been an absolute privilege to be part of, and also such an integral piece of Grimsby’s High Street history, but it is the right time for us to close the doors, knowing we are going out on a high.”
Meanwhile, another jewellery shop, Terence Lett Jewellers, located on the high street in Witney, Oxfordshire, also recently announced its decision to shut up shop.
A post on the retailer’s Facebook page said: “By order of the executor, we are closing down – everything must go!!
“It’s the end of an era, but the start of an amazing jewellery sale.
“Join us on Saturday 12th April at 09:30am as we launch an incredible closedown sale with 50% off all jewellery.
“The sale starts on Saturday 12th April at 9.30am and will continue while stock lasts.”
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Why are retailers closing shops?
EMPTY shops have become an eyesore on many British high streets and are often symbolic of a town centre’s decline.
The Sun’s business editor Ashley Armstrong explains why so many retailers are shutting their doors.
In many cases, retailers are shutting stores because they are no longer the money-makers they once were because of the rise of online shopping.
Falling store sales and rising staff costs have made it even more expensive for shops to stay open.
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs from April 2025, 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.
In some cases, retailers are shutting a store and reopening a new shop at the other end of a high street to reflect how a town has changed.
The problem is that when a big shop closes, footfall falls across the local high street, which puts more shops at risk of closing.
Retail parks are increasingly popular with shoppers, who want to be able to get easy, free parking at a time when local councils have hiked parking charges in towns.
Many retailers including Next and Marks & Spencer have been shutting stores on the high street and taking bigger stores in better-performing retail parks instead.
In some cases, stores have been shut when a retailer goes bust, as in the case of Carpetright, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Paperchase, Ted Baker, The Body Shop, Topshop and Wilko to name a few.
What’s increasingly common is when a chain goes bust a rival retailer or private equity firm snaps up the intellectual property rights so they can own the brand and sell it online.
They may go on to open a handful of stores if there is customer demand, but there are rarely ever as many stores or in the same places.
The Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down this year.