A MUCH-LOVED jewellers is set to close its doors for good after more than 20 years on the high street.
The jewellery shop has launched an ‘everything must go’ sale, ahead of its closure.
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Whittakers Jewellers, which has been a staple of Yarm High Street for 21 years, has confirmed its final day of trading will be Saturday, May 31.
The long-running store first announced its closure back in November, sparking sadness among loyal locals.
Since then, big bold signs have filled the shop windows, shouting about the store’s closing down sale with jewellery fans flocking in for a final bargain.
But now, with the countdown officially on, fresh signs have gone up confirming its last day is just days away.
The store have slashed jewellery prices from as much as 70% off.
The store posted one hot deal to its Facebook, where a diamond ring was slashed from £7,350 to £2,190.
The deal meant shoppers would save a massive £5,000.
The family-run store has thanked customers for their loyalty over the years in a heartfelt Facebook message.
It said: “We are sad we are leaving but we have treasured the 21 years we’ve been here on the High Street.
“We think of our customers as family and friends… we will miss you all.”
Whittakers have built up a massively loyal customer base and is located between the Lucy Pittaway art store and The Keys pub.
Four members of the Evans family have run the business since March 2004.
Bosses of the jewellers told Teesside Live they had expanded over the years – and even opened the first Pandora shop in the country.
But they added they always looked to maintain a “genuine, homey feel”.
Fans of the jewellers say it will leave a huge hole in the town, with one heartbroken shopper writing: “It’ll be such a big loss to the high street and to me.
“I’ve had the pleasure of purchasing so many lovely items over the years”
Another added: “Big loss to Yarm High Street.”
While a third said: “Thank you for your beautiful jewellery and fabulous staff. You will all be greatly missed”
It’s not the only jewellery giant feeling the pinch.
G Hewitt & Son, a 154-year-old jewellers, and one of the UK’s first Rolex retailers, launched a once-in-a-lifetime closing down sale last month.
The shop told followers on Facebook: “Everything must go – don’t miss out on huge savings.”
Meanwhile, The Watches of Switzerland Group – based in Leicestershire – has confirmed it will close 16 showrooms across the country and that 40 people were expected to leave the business.
Similarly, Terence Lett Jewellers, located on the high street in Witney, Oxfordshire, has announced its decision to shut up shop.
And loyal customers of Jane Allen Jewellers in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales were left distraught to hear the update and have been mourning the imminent loss.
With more and more historic jewellers disappearing from high streets, Whittakers’ final goodbye will be bittersweet for shoppers in Yarm.
Locals now have just days left to bag a bargain and say farewell to one of the town’s best-loved shops.
RETAIL SECTOR STRUGGLES
Its not just jewellery stores that are suffering to stay open.
The retail industry has faced multiple closures this year, with ocncerns over the British high streets becoming ‘ghost towns’.
It’s worth bearing in mind, larger retail chains often open and close branches based on customer demand and sales.
Sometimes a single store might shut because a lease is ending and the chain has decided it is better to direct cash into other shops or opening new ones.
However, the retail sector more broadly has struggled since the 2008 financial crash.
The Centre for Retail Research has said the industry has been going through a “permacrisis” during this period.
There are a number of reasons the sector is struggling, one being the rise of online shopping.
This has seen footfall to high street stores fall seeing large swathes of branches close across the UK.
Challenging economic conditions in recent years, including soaring inflation, have dented shoppers’ wallets and purses too.
While some bigger retailers have struggled to stay afloat, including Wilko, in recent years independent shops have suffered the most.
The Centre for Retail Research said more than 13,000 high street shops closed in 2024, with over 11,000 of these independents.
RETAIL PAIN IN 2025
The British Retail Consortium has predicted that the Treasury’s hike to employer NICs will cost the retail sector £2.3billion.
Research by the British Chambers of Commerce shows that more than half of companies plan to raise prices by early April.
A survey of more than 4,800 firms found that 55% expect prices to increase in the next three months, up from 39% in a similar poll conducted in the latter half of 2024.
Three-quarters of companies cited the cost of employing people as their primary financial pressure.
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.”
Professor Bamfield has also 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.”
