Hallmark & Thorntons store closing down, everything must go signs outside their shop front on 24th July 2025 in Leominster, United Kingdom. Several contributing factors are aligning to result in declining high streets, including the cost of living crisis squeeze on household incomes due to inflation and the post-Brexit fall in the pound, a shift […][/caption]
A BELOVED toy store chain has announced the closure of another store.
In a statement from the chief executive officer Andrew Murphy, The Entertainer has confirmed the closure of its Wrexham store.
The Entertainer has announced the closure of its Wrexham store[/caption]
The first store was opened in Amersham[/caption]
“It’s with considerable regret that we’ve concluded that it’s not commercially viable to renew the lease for our Wrexham store at the Eagles Meadow Shopping Centre,” Murphy said.
“We are particularly upset at the impact this has on our colleagues, who have run the store brilliantly.”
Murphy said it was “a sad fact of retail life“.
“Shops sometimes have to close, as shopping patterns shift and cost growth outstrips sales increases,” he said.
“We remain committed to serving the people of Wrexham through our successful toy concessions in selected Tesco stores and our nearby store at Broughton Park.”
The store first opened at Eagles Meadow in 2015 and will shut up shop for the final time in the new year.
The announcement comes just days after the brand announced the closure of its Sheffield store.
The Entertainer at The Moor Shopping Centre in Sheffield will close on Saturday, October 11.
The shop announced the closure alongside a massive 25 per cent off in an “everything must go” sale.
The sale slashed prices on tons of items by up to a quarter – excluding gift cards, Lego, VTech and LeapFrog products.
Shoppers are gutted about the shop disappearing, with one social media user saying: “And another one gone.”
Savers Health and Beauty Ltd have put in a planning application for the building, with designs for a new sign on the building already drawn up.
This is only The Entertainer’s latest loss this year with closures including outlets in Barrow-in-Furness, Croydon, Luton and Wandsworth.
The toy store isn’t the only store closure happening at Eagles Meadow, as River Island also announced the closure of its Wrexham store by January 2026.
Ben Lewis, chief executive officer of River Island, said “[the brand] is a much-loved retailer, with a decades-long history on the British high street”.
“However, the well-documented migration of shoppers from the high street to online has left the business with a large portfolio of stores that is no longer aligned to our customers’ needs.
“The sharp rise in the cost of doing business over the last few years has only added to the financial burden,” he continued.
“We have a clear strategy to transform the business to ensure its long-term viability.”
Lewis said “recent improvements … [were] showing very positive results” in River Island stores.
“It is only with a restructuring plan that we will be able to see this strategy through and secure River Island’s future as a profitable retail business,” he said.
“We regret any job losses as a result of store closures, and we will try to keep these to a minimum.”
The Entertainer was first opened in 1981 by Gary and Catherine Grant.
The chain had 160 stores at its peak, with the first store opened in Amersham.
After 44 years of ownership, the Grant family turned the business this year into an Employee Owned Trust.
The Entertainer toys are stocked in more than 2700 Tesco stores.
Shoppers expressed their dismay at the closure online.
“That’s sad, I don’t shop there as much now my child is older but the staff have always been wonderful at this store,” one person said.
“Oh no, not another shop, I love going there for my four-year-old grandson,” another said.
