Retail industry bosses said the closure of the historic store “illustrates the devastating impact” of the rise in national insurance contributions and the higher minimum wage, which will come into force in April.
One of Britain’s oldest department stores is shutting its last remaining shop after more than 140 years, blaming Budget tax and wage increases.
Beales, which first opened in Bournemouth in 1881, said trading at its branch in Poole’s Dolphin Centre will cease at the end of May.
This is not just the loss of another shop – it represents the end of a retail institution that has served communities for nearly one-and-a-half centuries.
Beales chief executive Tony Brown told the Telegraph the business had become “unviable” as it prepared to shoulder further cost increases announced in Labour’s October Budget.
