River Island is closing nine stores across the UK this week as part of previously announced restructuring plans to save the business. The British high street suffered a number of blows over the course of 2025, including major closures from the likes of Poundland and New Look. River Island is the latest high street chain to close several shops in order to restructure the business and improve its financial situation.
River Island’s restructuring plan was announced in June last year. It was then approved by the High Court in August 2025 and includes the closure of more than 30 stores throughout the month of January. Several stores have already been shut, with closures taking place towards the end of 2025, including Edinburgh, Brighton, Stockton-on-Tees and Great Yarmouth. The restructure has been put in place to “ensure the long-term viability of the business”, according to Ben Lewis, chief executive of River Island.
Sunday, January 18, will see the following River Island stores closing for good:
- Aylesbury
- Burton upon Trent
- Leeds Birstall Park
- Lisburn
- Perth
- Surrey Quays
- Sutton Coldfield
- Taunton
- Wrexham
The retailer has not announced any closing-down sales at these stores. Further River Island closures will happen on January 24, January 26 and January 31.
“Recent improvements in our fashion offer and shopping experience are starting to show results, and the restructuring plan will enable us to align our store estate to our customers’ needs,” Mr Lewis added.
“We are grateful to our suppliers, landlords and other stakeholders for their constructive engagement and shared confidence in River Island’s future.”
It was reported that River Island’s restructuring plan was spurred on by a £32.3million pre-tax loss and a 19% decline in sales. River Island has more than 5,000 employees in the UK.
More stores are under review as part of the restructure. The company is redeploying staff from affected stores where possible.
The River Island stores that have been confirmed as closing in 2025 and 2026 are:
- Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire
- Bangor Bloomfield, Northern Ireland
- Barnstaple, Devon
- Beckton, Greater London
- Brighton, East Sussex
- Burton-Upon-Trent, Derbyshire
- Cumbernauld, Scotland
- Didcot, Oxfordshire
- Edinburgh Princes Street, Scotland
- Falkirk, Scotland
- Gloucester, Gloucestershire
- Great Yarmouth
- Grimsby, Lincolnshire
- Hanley, Staffordshire
- Hartlepool, County Durham
- Hereford, Herefordshire
- Kilmarnock, Scotland
- Kirkcaldy, Scotland
- Leeds Birstall Park, West Yorkshire
- Lisburn, Northern Ireland
- Northwich, Cheshire
- Norwich, Norfolk
- Oxford, Oxfordshire
- Perth, Scotland
- Poole, Dorset
- Rochdale, Greater Manchester
- St Helens, Merseyside
- Surrey Quays, Greater London
- Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire
- Taunton, Somerset
- Workington, Cumbria
- Wrexham, Wales