South Shields independent Northern Threads to shutter
Menswear independent Northern Threads, which has been trading in South Shields in the North East of England since 2006, will be trading for its final day tomorrow, 24 August.
Co-Owners Phil Goodfellow and Nigel Binnie originally set up shop having worked together at Cruise in Newcastle from the late 1990s to 2005, where Binnie was the manager and Goodfellow was the assistant manager.
The store’s demise has been put down to never really recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic, too much competition online and a lack of support from certain brands and the retailer’s bank.
The closure was announced on the Northern Threads Instagram account earlier this week. It reads: "Unfortunately we bring you sad news today. On Saturday, we at Northern Threads will close our doors and pull the shutters down for the final time. As you can imagine, this decision hasn’t been an easy one to make after 18 years.
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"Recovery from the pandemic was always going to be tough but the loss of support from our suppliers @boss @hugo_official @adidasoriginals @cpcompany @ralphlauren @canadagoose @tommyhilfiger and our bank that likes to say no @lloyds.bank , has had a massive affect on the business to the point we can’t carry on any longer.
"We thank all our current suppliers for their continued support over the years and of course to you, our customers who have been with us since 2006. If you’re in town before Saturday, do call in and say bye, until then it’s over and out."
The post prompted a wave of sympathetic responses and farewells from other independent retailers and industry people who have known the popular retailer for many years.
The closure of Northern Threads marks another menswear independent to hit the wall in the North East. In 2020, long-standing Middlesbrough independent Psyche was acquired by Frasers Group, and was subsequently turned into a Frasers.
Frasers Group struck again earlier this year by acquiring Sunderland independent Aphrodite, which had traded for 30 years, which it then closed down.
Triads in Middlesbrough is also under new ownership (though this time not Frasers) and has closed its Middlesbrough store where it has traded since 1988. That is reportedly relocating to a unit in Yarm, but still marks the end of an era.
Speaking regarding the closure of Northern Threads, Phil Goodfellow told TheIndustry.fashion: "It’s a sad day, but ultimately we never recovered from Covid and from losing some key brands as they streamlined their businesses and no longer wanted to deal with smaller independents like us.
"We have tried everything, but it has just become too tough to make the turnover required.
"The death of the high street and of independents has also been down to the websites. Fair enough if you’re a big player and you’re spending money on Google Ads, but the profitability is not there for someone like us.
"You used to be able to get a brand and have a bit of exclusivity, so people had to come to your store for it. We were once a destination designer clothes shop, but now you can get any brand on your phone."
