Marks and Spencer bosses have now officially closed their flagship St Nicholas branch for good – marking the end of an era for Aberdeen city centre.
The doors of the landmark store have all been shut, with posters directing customers to the newly upgraded shop at Union Square, which opened on April 11.
It comes as a bit of a surprise as M&S officials initially indicated the city centre branch would remain open until later in the summer.
The food hall was the first department to close the day before the grand opening of the revamped mall unit last month.
The women’s and children’s clothing and home furnishings sections that used to be on the upper floors of the St Nicholas building were supposed to remain until June.
All of these have now been cleared out, with the ground floor now occupied only by a few scattered tables and shelves.
The branch, which has been a city centre staple for more than 80 years, has now also been removed from the retail giant’s website.
What does that mean for the Marks and Spencer store in Union Square?
The monumental move is part of Marks and Spencer’s £15 million expansion of their other Aberdeen store, making it one of the biggest one in Scotland.
M&S officials explained that closing the St Nicholas branch earlier than initially planned would allow staff to focus on upgrading the remaining of the mall store.
Dozens of eager shoppers flocked to the revamped branch in April to get a first look inside the new venue, which has “an extra large” bakery and wine shop.
There is also a market-style food hall with a fresh veg stand and a new cafe upstairs, which no longer sells lunch meals to focus on better coffee options and quicker service.
All clothing departments and home furnishing will be laid out on the second floor of the spruced up branch, with the menswear already put out on display.
M&S store manager, Luke Smith, said: “While we closed our St Nicholas Street location a little sooner than expected, our commitment to serving the Aberdeen community remains steadfast at our fantastic new Union Square store.”
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What’s going to happen with the city centre building now?
The now empty M&S building was put on the market shortly after the company announced their closure plans last January.
There have been a number of ideas of what it could be used for following the retailer’s departure – including a museum highlighting Aberdeen’s historic alcohol production.
However, owners are still to find someone willing to take on the huge site.
Property agents Savills previously said that finding a buyer could take up to 18 months, going by efforts to offload similar sites across the country.
And many have raised concerns over the building’s “uncertain future”.
Scottish Conservative north-east MSP Liam Kerr today reiterated those worries and said this was “a sad day for Aberdeen”.
He added: “Having a multi-storey building sitting empty like this will leave a huge void following the closure of John Lewis and Debenhams over the last few years.
“The consequences of this closure could be felt for years to come if the building becomes derelict.”
Read more:
- Photo gallery: Flagship Marks & Spencer has been at the heart of Aberdeen for 80 years
- FIRST LOOK inside ‘bigger and better’ Marks and Spencer in Union Square as shoppers queue for the grand opening
- ‘We became best friends while working at Aberdeen’s flagship Markies 40 years ago – and now we are moving together to Union Square’
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