<\/p>\n
\n Greeting card chain Clintons has shut its branch at Rugby Central as part of an ongoing programme of store closures across its estate.\n<\/p>\n
\n The retailer closed the Warwickshire store north of Banbury on Saturday, September 19, bringing an end to 16 years of trading at the shopping centre.\n<\/p>\n
\n Clintons has two stores in Oxfordshire, with one located in Thame and another at Witney, which both remain open and trading currently.\n<\/p>\n
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\n The Rugby branch first opened in 2009 and sold greeting cards, gifts and a range of products from well-known brands including Tsum Tsum, Yankee Candle and TY Toys.\n<\/p>\n
\n Employees said they were devastated by the closure, which also represents another vacant unit on the high street.\n<\/p>\n
\n One staff member said: \u201cI can\u2019t even begin to explain how devastating this is not only to us as staff members but being another loss in the precinct.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n In the lead-up to the closure, the store held a clearance event offering discounts of up to 70 per cent on cards, gifts and other merchandise as it sought to clear remaining stock.\n<\/p>\n
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\n The closure comes as Clintons continues to reduce the size of its retail estate amid challenging trading conditions and declining footfall on Britain’s high streets.\n<\/p>\n
\n In a previous statement, the company said: \u201cThe company has continued to close loss-making stores, and the portfolio of retail stores is now down to approximately 170 stores.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cThe high street continues to be unpredictable, and the company is seeing reduced footfall in the stores year on year.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n Clintons, which was founded in 1968, has faced increasing pressure from changing shopping habits, rising operating costs and competition from online retailers.\n<\/p>\n
\n The card retailer has been approached by this newspaper for further information and an update on the future of its Oxfordshire stores.\n<\/p>\n
#Major #retailer #trading #years #closes #store #jobs #lost<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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