M&S responds to rumours it is closing Blackpool store

Friday, 5 September 2025 18:36

By Richard Hunt

Marks & Spencer has responded to rumours that the chain is to close its Blackpool town centre store.

The company, one of Britain’s best-known high street brands, had a total of 1,047 stores in the UK as of June 2025.

M&S is currently planning to open or revamp stores in Lancashire as part of a £50 million investment in the North West.

Plans include a new Foodhall at Norcross, close to Thornton and Cleveleys, with more local jobs created, and a proposed relocation of the Blackburn store to the Frontier Park retail hub.

However, questions about the future of the Church Street store arose after a customer said they were told in confidence by a staff member that the store was to shut.

The branch, which was hit hard by the Covid lockdown and noticeably downscaled its displays, nevertheless remains one of the mainstays of Blackpoool town centre.

M&S issued a brief comment on the rumours, with a spokesman saying today: “We have nothing to say on this. If there are any updates, we will let you know.”

Three years ago the branch has since had its building purchased by Blackpool Council to help ensure its continued presence in the town centre

At that time, Council leader Lynn Williams stated that the town’s Marks & Spencer store was performing well and had experienced its best-ever Christmas.

Coun Paul Galley, leader of Blackpool Council’s Conservative opposition, said this week: “Marks & Spencer has always been a cornerstone of Blackpool’s high street – a brand that brings quality, trust, and footfall into our town centre.

“Yet today it is a shadow of its former self, with a whole floor closed and the offer much reduced and that should concern us all.

“Blackpool deserves the full retail experience M&S is famous for, not a cut-down version. But instead of securing that, Labour have saddled the town with a £4.8 million loan to buy the building – a reckless gamble that could leave us with yet another empty shell on their property portfolio, just like the fiasco with the Sands venue.”

M&S also has a smaller food hall in Cleveleys town centre, which will close if the larger Norcross store gets the go ahead.

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