Boots closures inevitable after long term decline, says GlobalData

Following today’s news that Boots is to close up to 200 stores in the UK

Patrick O’Brien, UK Retail Research Director at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view:

“It has taken Boots a long time to address the midmarket squeeze that has wrought so much damage to major multichannel retailers in other sectors such as food, fashion and department stores. Shoppers have been trading down to discounters, and trading up to higher end retailers for more expensive treats and gifts.

“Like Tesco and M&S it has actually been in this predicament for years, but unlike them, it has done little to address the issue until very recently, and now we have to wonder if Boots has left it too late to halt its market share decline.

“Long term lack of investment in stores has become more noticeable to shoppers, and its dated approach also extends to pricing, where multi-buy promotions and a generous loyalty scheme have made its shelf edge prices uncompetitive with discounters such as Aldi, Lidl and Savers, who have all been eating into its market share in health & beauty.”

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