An Aberdeen shopping centre has taken yet another blow after clothes shop Jigsaw announced it is closing its doors.
The company has made the “difficult” decision to shut their shop in the Bon Accord Centre after reviewing all of their sites across the country.
It the latest blow for the shopping centre, which in recent weeks has lost Topshop, Dorothy Perkins/Burton and Wallis as a recent of their owners being bought out of administration and moving online. River Island also closed its store late last year.
‘Difficult decision’ to cease trading in Granite City
In an e-mail to customers, Jigsaw said: “As you will know, the UK retail sector has been going though a seismic change for some time, with customers moving to the convenience of online shopping.
“This trend has only accelerated during the recent pandemic with high street, city and shopping centre locations being closed for several months.
“In light of this, we have been reviewing our stores across the UK, and have made the difficult decision to cease trading at our Aberdeen store.
“We are sorry for any inconvenience.”
Craig Stevenson, manager of the shopping centre, said it was a “challenging time” for retail.
“We can confirm that Jigsaw has closed the store at Bon Accord,” he said.
“Retail is a challenging environment, even more so following periods of lockdown.
“Bon Accord continues to work with retailers offering solutions to suit the changing marketplace.
“Our priority at this time is to deliver a safe and inviting retail destination for our visitors.”
Earlier this week, clothes website Boohoo confirmed that Arcadia brands Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton will move to online-only operation as part of a £25.2million buy-out.
It came after a similar buy-out of Topshop and Topman by Asos last week.
Cinema plans for vacant shop space
However, despite the challenging climate, the owners of the Bon Accord Centre last month lodged plans for a new four-screen cinema and public space.
The proposals for the upper mall include an outdoor seating area.
Mr Stevenson said at the time the scheme would help “repurpose vacant retail space” and ensure the city centre continues to attract people.
He said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for Bon Accord and for Aberdeen City Centre. We are looking forward to announcing further details of this and other new initiatives in due course.”