Iconic electrical retailer Comet is back more than a decade after it closed its doors. That’s cause for celebration as it’s not often that lost names make a return.
The UK high street has changed a lot in recent years, particularly as many retailers shut up shop for good as they became casualties of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sadly though, shops closing - and having economic and socio-cultural factors contribute to this - is nothing new. As our gallery below shows, there are many stores that have disappared from our high street in the last 20 years or so.
Some of these brand names have gone altogether, while others have re-branded or launched as online only companies. Take a look through our gallery and see which ones you remember.
9. Birthdays
Birthdays was a British High Street greeting cards retailer which first opened in 1966. Birthdays was sold a couple of times, including to Clinton Cards in 2004. It was announced in May 2009 that Birthdays had gone into administration, although Clinton’s kept stores open. Clintons Cards also faced difficultes in 2012, and all Birthdays stores were closed. | Birthdays
10. Disney Store
A visit to the Disney Store was a highlight of a shopping trip for any child in the 1990s, the 2000s and the 2010s here in the UK. It was filled with merchandise from everyone’s favourite Disney films - from new releases to classics. In many stores, there was a huge pile of toys at the back of the shop and a huge screen advertising upcoming films. There was also merchandise aimed at adults, including clothing. All Disney stores across the UK and Europe had closed by March 2021. The brand still operates online. | chrisdorney - stock.adobe.com
11. Music Zone
As the name suggests, Music Zone was the place to buy all your favourite CDs from, from the mid 1980s until 2007. | Music Zone
12. Borders Books
Borders Books was founded in 1998. As well as books, of course, typical Borders shop in the UK contained both a Paperchase stationery and Starbucks cafe concession. In addition, some branches also contained a RED5 gadget concession and GAME video games concession. All the stores closed in 2009. | Wikipedia