Almost 170,000 retail staff lost their jobs during 2024, up 42% on the previous year, and at the highest level since the height of the pandemic in 2020 when non-essential retail stores were forced to close with experts warning of more pain to come for high streets across Britain in 2025.
End of year figures compiled by the Centre for Retail Research who have been analysing, evaluating and forecasting retail trends for more than 25 years show that, during the 2024 calendar year, a total of 169,395 retail jobs were lost – up 49,990, an increase of 41.9%, compared with 2023.
38 major retailers went into administration in 2025 including household names like Lloyds Pharmacy, Homebase, The Body Shop, Carpetright and Ted Baker.
Around 33%, a third of all retail job losses in 2024, 55,914 in total, resulted from Administrations.
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The remainder of the jobs lost were through “rationalisation” as part of cost cutting programs by large retailers or independents simply shutting up shop for good.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, Director of the Centre for Retail Research, said “the comparatively low figures for 2023 now look like an anomaly – a pause for breath by many retailers after lockdowns if you like” adding “the problems of changed customer shopping habits, inflation, rising energy costs, rents and business rates have continued and forced many retailers to cut back even more strongly in 2024”.
Independent retailers, those small businesses generally with 1 to 5 stores, shed 58,616 jobs in total during 2024.
Alex Probyn, President of Property Tax at the real estate adviser Altus Group, said “the cut in the business rates discount from 1st April will disproportionately affect independent retailers who will see their bills rise on average by 140% adding an extra £5,024 for the average shop.”
The current 75% discount to business rates – due to end on 31st March 2025 – will be replaced by a less generous discount of 40% – still with a maximum discount of £110,000 – a move that will save HM Treasury but cost the retail sector an extra £688 million Altus Group forecasts.
Whilst the British Retail Consortium estimates that the retail sector will face a £2.3 billion bill from April after the implementation of the increase in employer NICs from 13.8% to 15%, as well as the reduction in the earnings threshold that they must start paying it from £9,100 to £5,000.
Professor Bamfield warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, he said, “by increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer’s household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020” estimating 202,000 jobs could be lost.
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